Some Great Truth
by foreverandnow
Summary: He never knew what he was looking for, until he found it in her. She'd been looking her whole life, but she found it in the most unexpected of places.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Okay, this is going to be a long one, so bear with me. First of all, this is my first GG fic, so go easy on me! I've written for some other fandoms, but it's always a challenge writing new characters! I hope to get them as close to character as possible, but we'll see how it goes! Second, I know this plot has been done about a zillion times, but I couldn't get it out of my mind, and hopefully I'll have my own twist to add to a familiar tale. It's the basic 1x13 story, but I should note a few things. First of all, Serena hasn't gone to Chuck yet to ask for his help. Second, the timeline isn't going to be exactly the same as the show. I'm taking artistic license with the events to make it work with my story. Most of the major plot points will still occur, but maybe not precisely the accurate time. And finally, I'm a little fuzzy on how long Chuck and Blair were together before she went back to Nate, so I created my own details. I'm a big Chair fan, so this will be a C/B fic, but the other characters will join us from time to time. Please let me know what you think!

Disclaimer: I don't own Gossip Girl or any of the characters. Just having a little fun with them. The story title comes from Alexi Murdoch's "Wait."

_No. _That was the only word in her mind at the moment.

_No no no._ This could not be happening. It could not possibly be happening. She'd been careful, she'd been safe. She was impulsive, but Chuck was prepared…as was Nate. There was no possible way that the test staring up at her could actually be correct.

Her first instinct was to reach for the phone, but who would she call? Chuck? Nate? Even if this really was happening, which one would she call?

She didn't want to answer that, because she was afraid she already knew the answer. Nate had been as perfect as she had ever dreamed he would be, and he was so sweet about her "first time." It had made it that much harder to fake, and she hated him, just a little, for caring so much about her virginity. Chuck had been sweet as well, but in his own way, in the way he was careful about her feelings, in the way he cared for her after. He had still been Chuck Bass, but a kinder, gentler Chuck Bass than the one she'd come to know. He also knew it was her first time, and he made sure to use protection. But they were in the back of a limo, and there was only so much he could do…she'd been afraid the condom might have broken, but she convinced herself it was first time nerves making her paranoid.

She had a feeling, if she calculated it all back, the odds were in favour of Chuck. She and Nate hadn't been back together that long, and now that she thought about it, she couldn't recall having her period during their time together. She and Chuck spent nearly a month sneaking around….a whole month of opportunities for poor choices. _But you're not pregnant_, she told herself. _This can't actually be happening. It's a mistake. You just need another test to prove it._

With that thought in mind, she pressed her speed dial for the only person she knew to call. "Serena?" she asked as the tears started to fall.

"B, what is it?" her best friend asked worriedly.

"I really need you here. Can you come? Please."

"Of course, B, I'll be right there," Serena promised. "Are you okay? Do you need anything?"

"I think….I think I need another test," she confessed, just barely holding back a sob.

"Oh," Serena answered. Then there was a long pause, and Blair could practically see the wheels turning through the phone line. "Oh God."

"Not helping!" she cried in distressed.

"Okay! Okay, I'm sorry. I just…okay," Serena managed again, and if her best friend was panicking, how the hell was Blair supposed to deal with this? "I'll be right there," Serena swore. "Just hang in there, B. It'll be okay."

"Please hurry," she added tearfully before hanging up. Still clutching the phone in her hand, she slid down the wall and tucked up into a ball, trying to hold herself together as she waited for Serena.

It seemed like hours had passed before her best friend finally appeared, breathless and holding a plastic bag, and Serena wasted no time dropping down to the floor to hug her.

"I'm so sorry, S," she apologised right away. Honestly, she didn't feel that bad about snapping at Serena earlier. She was feeling a little too terrible for herself to be worried about Serena's feelings at the moment, but she _had_ been a bitch, and Serena had asked no questions and put up no struggle when she called in tears, desperate for help. "I never should have-"

"Shh, it's okay," her friend hushed her. "You don't need to apologise."

"I think there was something wrong with the test. Did you get another one?" she asked, trying in vain to wipe at the tears that just kept falling.

"Something wrong with the test?" Serena asked in confusion. "What do you mean? It didn't work?"

"It was…positive," she admitted. "But it must be wrong."

"Oh, B."

"I'm not pregnant!" she snapped. "I can't be pregnant. It's impossible. It had to be wrong. Please, just give me another test."

Serena opened her mouth to argue, but seemed to think better of it and handed Blair the plastic bag. Inside she found two more tests, and grabbed the first one she could reach. Serena went to wait in her room, and Blair forced herself to be calm. This test was going to prove it. This test would confirm what she already knew….that she wasn't pregnant, that it was just a fluke, a mistake. And as soon as she knew for sure she wasn't pregnant, she was going to write a very heavily worded letter to the company informing them of their awful, terrible product which had caused her so much distress for the last half hour.

When she was finished with the test, she left it sitting on the edge of her bathtub and went to sit with Serena. Her friend was perched nervously on the edge of the bed, so she joined her there, and neither of them said a word. After a moment, Serena reached over and grabbed her hand, stilling the nervous tremors.

"You should go check," Serena finally said when the time was up.

"I can't," she shook her head. "What if it says the same thing?"

"Then you need to know, B," her friend pointed out gently.

"No. I can't. I can't do this, S."

"Yes you can. I'll be right here," Serena promised. When Blair still made no signs of moving, Serena stood up herself. "Do you want me to look for you?" she offered.

"Could you?"

"Of course. I'll be right back," she promised, turning on her heel and disappearing into the bathroom.

When her friend didn't immediately return squealing in delight, she knew there had been no mistake. It was true. She was pregnant. After waiting all this time, after actually holding out long past most of her friends, a single stupid act had cost her everything. Well, maybe not _one_ stupid act. More like a short series of stupid acts. But at least she could still claim some kind of temporary insanity that had made her do that same stupid thing on a repeated basis for several weeks.

Without waiting for Serena, she climbed into the bed and hid herself beneath the covers. Maybe if she could just go to sleep, she would wake up and discover this was all a terrible dream. If she just closed her eyes long enough, it would all just go away. A baby didn't fit anywhere in her life, in her perfect movie. Teenage pregnancies were an afterschool special; her life was an Audrey Hepburn film. There was never a happy ending when a seventeen-year old girl made a mistake and wound up a mother, and there would certainly be no happy ending if her co-star in this melodrama turned out to be Chuck Bass.

Without even wanting to, she inadvertently started to count back the days, trying to remember her last period. A sick part of her didn't even want to know. Maybe if she just didn't think too hard, she could pretend most of November was nothing more than a bad dream. She would be pregnant with Nate's baby, and though that was still a nightmare of near-epic proportions, at least her life wouldn't be utterly and completely destroyed. Maybe he would do something terribly romantic and propose to her on the spot, and she would act approriately scandlized while been secretly thrilled, and then later, much later, after making him sweat a little, she would say yes. Their family would start earlier than planned, but it would be _their_ family. The family she was always supposed to have.

But as she counted, she realised it had been quite a while since her last period. And she slept with Nate the first week of December. It didn't quite add up, and she really just watned to die.

After a few moments, she felt the bed shift under Serena's weight and felt her best friend curl up beside her. "It's true, isn't it?" Blair asked quietly, needing to hear it, just once.

"Yeah, B, it's true," Serena confirmed softly. "It was positive. You're pregnant."

"Maybe I should take the other one. Just in case."

"Two tests said you were pregnant, Blair," her friend said gently as she reached over to play soothingly with Blair's hair.

"But I can't be," she shook her head miserably. "I'm supposed to go to Yale. I'm only seventeen. I can't be…I'm not supposed to be a mother."

"You could still go to Yale. There's still time," Serena tried to encourage her, though they both knew having a baby was practically the same as a death sentence when it came to Ivy Leagues and parties and everything else an Upper East Side teen was supposed to have. "There are more important things to think about now, though," her friend continued. "First you need to talk to Chuck," she said practically. Serena didn't know about Nate, so she automatically assumed it was Chuck's. It made the guilt that much worse, and Blair wondered if it was possible to just curl up tight enough that the whole world would just away. "Blair?" Serena prompted after a moment.

"I can't do this, S," she shook her head. "How can this be happening?"

"B, if you really don't want to do this, you know you don't have to," her friend pointed out gently. "You wouldn't be the first at Constance to go through this. No one would even have to find out. But you do need to talk to Chuck."

A lump formed in her stomach at the sound of his name, and she felt sick all over again. She finally had her boyfriend back, after all the tears and the drama and the fear that her future as Mrs. Nathaniel Archibald was over before it even began. It may be slightly less than perfect at the moment, but that was to be expected after everything they'd been through. The important thing was they were trying. Really, truly trying, and all she wanted was a chance to make it work, a chance to show him why he shouldn't give up on her. She wanted him to see that she was everything he wanted, not Serena. A baby would ruin all of the progress they made and all the progress yet to be made. And if the baby was Chuck's…well, Nate would probably never speak to her again.

"Blair, are you listening?" Serena asked her.

"I have to tell you something, S," she blurted as tears started to flow a little more rapidly. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you before. I'm terrible."

"You're not terrible!" Serena protested. "What's wrong?"

"I…I slept with Nate!" she cried. "I slept with Nate the night of Cotillion. Chuck ruined everything, and then Nate was so sweet, and I knew he wanted me back. So I slept with him!"

Serena got even closer and wrapped her arms tightly around her, hugging her close as she cried. "Shh," her friend tried to calm her. "It's okay. It's going to be okay."

"How will it be okay?!" she demanded hysterically. "I'm pregnant and I don't even know whose is it! This isn't supposed to be my life! I'm Audrey Hepburn! I'm not some dropout in a Lifetime movie!"

"Shh," Serena tried to hush her once more. "It's not that bad. When was your last period?"

"I don't know," she answered automatically.

"B."

"I don't know, okay! I don't know whose is it is!"

"Well you're going to have to figure it out! You have to tell them about this, Blair! You need to make a decision, and you _cannot _do that without telling the father."

Blair was silent for a long moment as she considered her options.

"Blair, promise me," Serena demanded. "Promise me you are not going to decide anything without either Chuck or Nate. That's not fair, and you know it."

"Like Chuck would even care," she snorted. "I'm sure he'd hand me the cash to do it without even flinching."

"You don't know that."

Blair said nothing to that, because honestly, Serena was right. She had no idea what Chuck would say about this. There were a lot of things that confused her about Chuck. She always thought he was good to have as a partner-in-crime, and he could certainly be entertaining, but she'd never given it much more thought than that. He was pervert, but it was funny, and he pulled it off somehow. But then that night at Victrola, he changed right before her eyes. If she was truly honest with herself, she'd seen hints at that vulnerability all along. When he pitched the club to her, she saw how desperately he wanted approval, and she had wondered, ever so briefly, if there was another Chuck Bass hidden beneath layers of sarcasm and smarmy jokes.

That night, she saw that there was. The way he murmured, "You sure?" before he even touched her had just melted her. She'd never wanted anything so bad in her life. He knew she was a virgin and he was everything she needed him to be. He guided her through it without saying a word, just showing her what to do and absolutely worshipping her with every touch. She thought the first time would be terrible, but it was far from it. There were moments of discomfort and fear, but the good had far outweighed the bad. Even though she regretted it the next morning, she found herself remembering, over and over, the sound of his voice in her ear, the electric feel of his skin on hers.

He surprised her again when he admitted he had feelings for her. She never thought he was capable of butterflies, or a gesture as sweet as buying that necklace. There had been a lot of things about Chuck that she never would have dreamed, but it had all been overshadowed by his scheming at Cotillion. He ruined her night because he was jealous. Jealous! Chuck Bass was so jealous that he destroyed her perfect night, and she hated him in that moment. She hated him because he was too much like her. He couldn't just tell her how he felt. He couldn't just explain his discomfort with the situation. Instead, he plotted against her. It was entirely too reminiscent of her own malevolent plots to get what she wanted, so she went back to what she knew. She went back to Nate, who was so gloriously empty-headed and gorgeously daft.

But while she was sleeping with him, she thought of the fact that he had touched Serena like that. And then she thought that as gorgeous as he was, he was unfocused and a little rough. He tried to be smooth and passionate, but he was a little awkward, a little clumsy. It had been….nice. She'd spent so much time trying to fake her virginity that she didn't really let herself enjoy it too much, but it was nice, and he held her afterwards…unlike Chuck, who had merely dropped her off at her door. Nate had whispered that he loved her when it was over, and he had been attentive and kind, so worried that she might still be hurting. It made her feel like a terrible person, but she tried to tell herself it was okay. At least they had been broken up when she was with Chuck, and she obviously couldn't tell him because he just wouldn't understand.

But she'd seen the expression on Chuck's face when he caught them making out. He tortured and blackmailed her, but wasn't that just his way? All in all, she had no idea what he would say if she told him she was pregnant. She had no idea what either of them would say.

"What am I going to do, Serena?" she asked miserably.

"You need to talk to Chuck first," her friend answered gently. "Does he know about Nate?"

"Yes," she nodded.

"Okay, then go talk to Chuck. I think you should probably wait and find out if it's his before you say anything to Nate. It will only make things harder," Serena pointed out. "But Chuck already knows, so he can help you. And then you need to make a doctor's appointment so you can find out how far along you are. I'll go with you," she offered.

"I don't know if I can tell him, S," she protested weakly. "I just want everything to go away. I want to go to sleep and wake up and have this all be a really terrible nightmare."

"I know you do," her friend soothed, hugging her close once more. Normally Blair would shy away from the touch, but she found she didn't mind at the moment. Right now, she wanted to be held and comforted. "But you know you have to deal with this. No matter what you decide, you can't just ignore it. That will only make things worse."

_So will telling Chuck_, she thought wryly. "Can we pretend this doesn't exist today? Just for one day? Please," she begged Serena, desperate to stop thinking, for an hour or a minute or a second about the tragedy her life had suddenly become.

"You have to tell Chuck," Serena reiterated.

"I will," she promised.

"Tonight."

"S," she whined.

"We'll watch movies and eat ice cream," Serena proposed. "And then you and I will go to the Palace, and you will talk to Chuck. These are my terms."

"Tyrant."

"Deal?"

"Deal," she sighed heavily, reluctantly sitting up and wiping at the tears. "But we're watching Tiffany's first."

"I didn't expect anything else."

As promised, they spent the entire afternoon watching movies and eating ice cream in Blair's room. Serena had popped out briefly to pick up movies and brought back three different flavours of ice cream. For once, Blair forced herself not to think about the fat or calorie content and indulged. Her mother was out of town, of course, so Dorota offered to bring dinner up, but by that time they were both full on ice cream and couldn't even think about eating anything else.

They had just finished up _Sabrina_ when her cell phone rang its distinctive Nate ring. Serena knew it well, and she turned to her friend in concern. "I have to answer that," Blair sighed. "I haven't talked to him all day."

"He'll be worried," Serena agreed.

Steeling herself for the agony of it, she answered the phone as cheerfully as possible. She'd actually been enjoying herself a little, but now reality had returned in the form of her boyfriend, and she was none too happy to see it.

"Hi, Sweetheart," Nate greeted her warmly. "What are you up to?"

"Just having a girl's day with Serena. I wasn't feeling well, so she brought over some movies to keep me company."

"Why didn't you call me?" Nate asked, sounded slightly wounded. "I could have come over."

She inadvertently thought back to about a hundred other times when she'd been sick and he'd kept far away from her, barely even remembering to call and check in on her on a semi-regular basis. Was he overcompensating now, she wondered, or had he really changed? "Oh, that's sweet of you," she managed. "But Serena and I just wanted some girl time. It's been a while," she tried to explain.

"Do you need anything?" he offered.

"No, I was just a little under the weather," she tried to evade, becoming a little irritated with the doting act. Nate Archibald was a sweet guy, a good guy, but he was not an attentive guy, and he was certainly not the type who fawned over his girlfriend all the time. She had often wished he would be, but now that he was, she was just annoyed. "I'll be fine. But I should probably get back to Serena. See you tomorrow?"

"I'll bring breakfast," he offered. "Your favourite croissants."

"Sounds perfect," she agreed.

"I love you."

"Love you, too," she managed before hanging up. She was tempted to throw her phone across the room, then decided it was too precious to her.

"So that was…" Serena began.

"Excruciating," she finished for her as she collapsed back on the bed. "Can you tell me something?" she asked, not waiting for an answer as she continued. "Do you think Nate's been acting weird?"

"Weird? Weird how?"

"I don't know," she sighed. "He's been so…sweet."

"Nate's a sweet guy, B."

"You _know_ how he was," she rolled her eyes. She was tempted to add a snarky comment about how it was mostly Serena's fault, but she had (mostly) forgiven her friend for that transgression, and it really wasn't worth bringing it up again. "He was just going through the motions for a long time. He looked at me and it was like…it was like he saw right through me. Now suddenly he's like…like I always wanted him to be," she admitted.

"Why don't you sound happy about that?" Serena asked suspiciously.

"I am," she answered.

"Blair," her friend reprimanded, clearly not buying it.

"I don't know," she groaned again, flopping over onto her back and staring listlessly up at the ceiling. Nate Archibald was supposed to be everything she ever wanted, but now she was pregnant and she was just…annoyed with him. Maybe it was hormones, maybe it was self-preservation against the horrible fight that was sure to come. "Don't I get to do irrational things right now?"

"Yes, but…is it because of Chuck?" Serena asked.

"Gross. No, of course not."

"You're the one who slept with him, B," her friend so kindly pointed out. "So obviously not that gross."

"Chuck Bass is evil and I hate him."

"When you lie, your eyes don't match your mouth."

"I'm a great liar and you know it," she snapped.

"Quite an accomplishment, B."

"You're not helping!"

"Okay, okay! I'm sorry," her friend apologised. "But there was something there, right?"

"He's Chuck Bass," she responded, then hated herself when it came out so terribly _sad_. "Maybe he had feelings for me, but he has the emotional maturity of a five-year old."

"Compared to Nate, who is probably approaching his seventh emotional birthday."

"Okay, point taken," she conceded. "But Chuck would have gotten bored even if I hadn't called it off. He can't keep his attention on anything for too long. It was the right thing going back to Nate."

"What about you, Blair?" Serena continued to push. "Do you…you know?"

She refused to answer that, refused to let herself consider that she may or may not still have a _thing_ for Chuck Bass, of all people. It was the stupidest thing she could possibly do, and it just destined her to a broken heart at some point. So she may have been the first one to give him butterflies…that didn't mean much. Nate had been the first person to do that for her, and then he'd gone and slept with her best friend and lied about it for months.

Which just brought her back to her unresolved hurt with him and started the cycle all over again. "I hate men," she declared. "Those two idiots ruined my life."

"It's not going to be that bad, B," Serena tried to assure her, like she actually had a clue. How was it that Serena escaped from all the things unscathed? How was it that Serena Van Der Woodsen, who had been sexually active since the age of fourteen, who had partied with the hardest of partiers, who had done drugs and who had frequently consumed enough alcohol to forget where she'd been the night before, came out all of that like a ray of fucking sunshine? That inane boyfriend of hers was completely head over heels for her, and she actually seemed to feel the same way for him. It just wasn't fair that someone like Serena just stumbled into being so _happy_. Blair had tried to plan her entire life, but as soon as she lost her virginity in November, she found herself pregnant in January.

"How would you know?" she asked accusingly, not even caring if she alienated the only person she had to rely on right now. "Nothing ever happens to you. You come out of every scandal like it didn't even touch you."

"B, you know better than anyone that's not true," her friend answered darkly, reaching over to take her hand. And that was the other thing; how was Serena always so damn nice? Why didn't she ever just act like a total bitch? "Seriously, B, it's going to be okay," Serena continued. "I'm going to be there for you. Through all of it. No matter what you decide, okay? We'll get through it together," she promised.

New tears began to leak from Blair's eyes, and she suddenly wanted another hug. And it was okay, she reasoned, because later she could blame this on the sudden shock and the whacked up hormones she was experiencing. "Will you come with me?" she asked as she embraced her best friend. "To talk to Chuck?"

"I'll go with you," Serena promised, "but you need to talk to him alone. I'm not a part of this. It's between the two of you."

"Just go with me," she pleaded.

"Okay, B. I'll be there."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks to everyone whose read so far! I know it's not the most original idea, but I hope you'll come along for the ride and a few surprises will crop up along the way!

_"Feel I'm on the verge of some great truth, where I'm finally in my place.  
But I'm fumbling still full proof, and it's cluttering my space,  
Casting shadows on my face." - Alexi Murdoch, "Wait"_

1812.

The numbers in front of her were familiar. The feelings churning in her stomach were not. She'd been here a few times alone, and one of those times might be responsible for her current condition, but even when she was giving everything to Chuck Bass, she never felt this nervous. Serena had abandoned her in the lobby, promising that she would be waiting in the bar and could be here in a second if she sent a distress text. She thought it might help to have her best friend so near, but as she stood in front of the door, preparing herself to knock, she realised that this was one thing she had to do completely alone. No matter how close Serena was, this _was_ between her and Chuck, and it was between them in the most intimate of ways.

Well, she thought so, anyway.

On the ride over, while she was trying not to think of all the terrible things Chuck might say about her, she found herself absentmindedly counting once more. She suddenly remembered, all too clearly, the last time she'd had her period. She was having a horrible day already; she'd broken a heel, she was worried about how things were going with Nate, and she had a test in fourth period. She was rushing through her morning routine, and then she realised she had started her period. It was the day of that awful history test, and that was at the beginning of November. It was now January. She stopped herself there, refusing to think any further, but she knew what that meant. There was still an off-chance the baby was Nate's, but in all likelihood, she was carrying a little Bass.

God, did they even come in baby form? Somehow, that just seemed wrong. She couldn't imagine Chuck – or his father – even being an innocent, vulnerable little kid. _That's not entirely true, is it?_ her conscience told her, but she brushed the thoughts out of her mind and raised her hand to knock on the door before she completely lost her nerve and ran away. Before she made contact, however, the door suddenly opened and revealed Chuck.

"Waldorf," he greeted, smirking a little as he did his characteristic sweep of her body. She fought the urge to roll her eyes and tried to smile.

"Going somewhere?"

"I'm out of scotch," he answered wryly.

"Well, that's certainly a tragedy, but I need to talk to you," she informed him, pushing past him to walk into the suite.

"Are you still worried I'm going to tell dear Nathaniel about your little indiscretion?" he asked, raising an eyebrow as he closed the door behind him. "Or, shall I say, indiscretions. As much fun as this has been, I'm not going to tell him. He's my best friend."

"Yes, well, you might not have a choice in the matter," she snapped without even thinking about it. She saw a flash of concern in Chuck's eyes, and his expression darkened a little, the smirk disappearing.

"What are you talking about?"

This was the moment. This was the part where she was supposed to tell Chuck that she was pregnant. But as she looked at him, she suddenly started to feel a little faint. This whole horrible day was catching up with her, and she felt queasy and miserable and tears filled her eyes for the thousandth time today at the mere thought of being so vulnerable in front of him.

"Blair?" Chuck asked, his tone suddenly concerned as he stepped a little closer. "What's going on?"

"I…I can't," she shook her head as her hands began to tremble. Her head was beginning to swim, everything becoming a little distant and detached as she felt herself drifting. Oh great. She was going to pass out. Right here in the suite, right in front of Chuck, and then he would inevitably call someone, and then it would all come out in the worst way possible.

Before she passed out, however, Chuck was suddenly guiding her into a chair. As soon as she was sitting, he disappeared and then returned with a bottle of water from the mini-bar. She gratefully took it and began to drink, focusing on the water and nothing else, trying to calm herself before she hyperventilated or something equally humiliating. "Tell me what's going on," Chuck demanded, but his voice was surprisingly gentle as he stood in front of her, watching her with an unreadable expression. "Did something happen?"

"Chuck," she whispered, dropping her gaze, unable to look at him when she confessed. "Serena wasn't buying the pregnancy test for herself. It was for me."

There was a long pause, and she was fairly certain neither of them was breathing at the moment. "And?" he finally asked. He sounded bored, but she could tell from the way his body suddenly tensed, he was anything but.

"It was positive," she breathed. "I'm pregnant."

He said nothing at first. She dared to look at him, but he wasn't looking at her. He was looking above her, past her, staring at something she couldn't see. He stayed that way for a moment, then abruptly turned on his heel and stepped over to the bar. He may be out of scotch, but Chuck Bass was never out of all liquor, so he pulled out a bottle of something, grabbed a glass, and swallowed it all in one gulp. _Potential father of my child, right there_, she thought bitterly.

"Why are you telling me this?" he asked, still not looking at her as he concentrated intently on the glass in front of him. "Shouldn't you be talking to Nate?"

She took a deep breath and another sip of the water. "I'm honestly not sure," she admitted after a moment.

"You're not sure," he repeated incredulously.

"No, Chuck, I'm not sure," she answered in irritation at the obvious accusation in his tone.

"Well, that's classy, B."

"Excuse me?"

"Two guys in one week? And now you're pregnant? What is this, an after school special?" he asked sarcastically as he poured himself another drink.

"And who are you to talk?" she demanded. "You'll sleep with anything that _breathes_."

"Obviously."

The barb stung, just as he knew it would. "I knew this was a mistake," she shook her head angrily, wishing Serena had never talked her into this. She mentally took back any nice thing she had ever thought about Chuck and reminded herself to give Serena a good verbal thrashing or two for suggesting this horrible, awful mistake. "I should have just taken care of it. I knew you wouldn't care." She stood up and started to storm out, completely prepared to leave this mistake behind her once and for all. Serena could help her find a discreet doctor, she would take care of it, and she would never have to think about Chuck again. She could go back to Nate and get things right this time – really, really right. And she would forget about limos and burlesque clubs and racing hearts, and she would just be content with lovely, adorable, mindless Nate. Someday she would get pregnant again and have beautiful little blonde boys who looked just like their daddy, and she wouldn't think about indiscretions in her past or the foolish things she'd done as a stupid, naïve teenager.

"Wait," Chuck called after her, grabbing her wrist to stop her before she reached the door.

"Let go of me," she insisted, angrily trying to yank away from him. He resisted at first, tightening his grasp on her arm, but when she continued to resist he let go. "This was a mistake. It was all a mistake. I'll take care of it tomorrow and neither of us will ever have to think about this again. And don't worry, I won't tell Nate, so he'll never know what happened."

"Hang on a second, Waldorf," he tried again.

She spun around to face him, furious with him and with herself as she began to cry. Seriously, what was wrong with her? Why did his harsh words hurt her so much? Why did she even want his support or his understanding? She wanted _Nate_, she loved _Nate_, and Chuck Bass was nothing but a terrible choice when she was hurt and confused. Her weeks with him had been temporary insanity, and he was the last person she should be expecting compassion from. "I don't know why I'm here," she cried. "But Serena made me. She told me I couldn't do anything without telling you. So I was stupid and I came. But just let me go." She wiped at her tears, but they continued to flow and she briefly considered running past him and hurtling herself out of one those windows. "Please, let me go, Chuck," she begged him.

"I'm sorry, Blair," he apologised, his voice surprisingly soft and actually a little remorseful. "I shouldn't have said that. Sit down."

"No," she refused. "I just…I really need to get out of here. Please let me get out of here."

"We need to talk about this."

"I can't," she shook her head. "I really can't do this right now. I just want to go home."

"I'm not letting you leave like this," he countered. "Calm down so we can talk."

"Calm down?" she cried incredulously. "How do you expect me to calm down? You're awful, Chuck! You're mean and you're hateful and this has been the worst day of my life! I thought you might actually listen to me and _help_ me but all you can do is make your stupid little comments! You have no idea what this is like!"

"I'm sorry, okay!" he exclaimed in frustration. "You caught me off guard. I'm not good at this. Just calm down and we can talk about everything and figure something out."

"Forget it. I don't want you to be a part of this."

"Don't say that," he said sternly. "Come on, Waldorf. I said I'm sorry. I didn't mean what I said."

"Do you ever?" she challenged.

His jaw clenched at that, and she watched as he struggled with something in his head. "I meant what I said about the butterflies," he finally answered. "I meant what I said when I told you that you would be so much more on me."

Her anger suddenly deflated a little as she realised he was being honest with her. For once, he was actually telling her something. For once he didn't cover it up with a witty remark or a pointed insult. He just…told her. "You ruined my Cotillion," she reminded him weakly.

"You went with _Nate_, Blair."

"As a-"

"He's never been your friend," he cut her off before she could even say it. "Will you talk to me now?"

She took a deep breath and wiped again at the tears before nodding and allowing him to guide her over to the couch. They sat several feet apart from one another, and both found something else to look at as they struggled with the tension and the unbearable weight of this reality.

"Are you going to tell Nate?" he asked after a few moments of awkward silence.

"I don't know," she sighed. "Serena thought I should tell you first, since Nate doesn't know that we slept together."

"That's actually a good idea," he acknowledged. "Don't tell her I said that."

She actually laughed shortly at that, and it brought a half-smile to his face. "I think I should decide what I'm going to do first. I don't want to tell him if there's not really a reason to."

"You want to get an abortion?" he asked in surprise.

"I don't know," she shrugged. "Maybe. I'm seventeen. I'm not really ready for a baby…or the things Gossip Girl would say about me. But why are you so surprised? Don't tell me you've never paid for an abortion before."

"For your information, Waldorf, I've always done a good job taking care of my

business," he answered wryly. "And I didn't take you for the type, that's all."

He probably had a point there. It was sort of expected in their world, where money flowed freely and mistakes were easily covered up. Scandals were to be avoided at all cost, so if an unfortunate child entered the mix, most people took the easy way out, fixed the problem, and moved on. There had certainly been other Constance girls to travel down that path, and she had a feeling some of their mothers had, as well. It was usually a tidy little secret, but it happened. Blair herself had just always bristled a little at the thought, and she sort of hated that he knew that about her. Could he really read her that well? She'd certainly never told anyone how she felt about it before, and it was odd that he just _knew_ that. But regardless, he was right. She didn't like it, and she always thought when she got pregnant, it would be a joyous occasion. Of course, she never thought she would be seventeen, but babies were adorable and sweet, and despite her ice queen reputation, she really did like children and their innocence. She'd always looked forward to the day she got her own chubby-cheeked little one, though she always imagined it would be far, far in the future, when she didn't care so much about her figure or Yale or being Queen of Constance.

"It's up to you, Blair," he assured her when she didn't say anything. "And whatever you do, I'll help."

"Don't say that if you don't mean it," she shook her head. "You can't just say that."

"I do mean it," he insisted.

"You can't really expect me to believe you would just be okay with this."

"I never said I'd be okay with it," he shot back. "I think it's obvious that the situation is less than ideal. I said I would help you, and I mean it."

"And if I decide I want to keep it?" she asked, fully expecting him to change his mind. He squirmed a little, looking distinctly uncomfortable, but he didn't retract his statement.

"Whatever you decide," he reiterated.

"It might be yours," she reminded him.

"Yes, I'm aware of that."

God, he was confusing.

"Blair, if it's my kid, I'm going to help. I wouldn't make you do that alone."

It was exactly what she wanted to hear, but she didn't want him to see her satisfaction. "What would you want me to do?" she asked him instead.

"It's not up to me," he shook his head.

"You may be half the genetic makeup. You should probably get some say."

"Don't make this about me," he warned her. "Gossip Girl would talk about me for a day. She would talk about you…"

"Forever," she finished for him. "Yes, I'm aware."

"It has to be your decision."

"What if I want to know what you think?" she prodded.

"Then I would say, I'm not in any position to be a father. I'm irresponsible, I drink and…I'm Chuck Bass," he said simply, knowing he could convey everything with those three words. "We're too young. We don't know what we're doing," he continued. "But Bass and Waldorf genes?" he smirked, just a little. "The kid would be unstoppable."

"Okay, please stop talking," she laughed aloud.

"What? Why?" she asked in confusion.

"It's…weird," she shuddered a little. "You're being like…normal. And sort of nice."

"Just telling you the truth. My genes alone would ensure excellence."

"I certainly hope our child would have your humility."

"And your wit."

Okay, now it really needed to stop. They were talking about the attributes they wanted in their child, and it made this absurd situation feel even more real. Yesterday she never wanted to talk to him again, and now she was quite possibly linked to him forever. They didn't even know if it was _his_ yet. There was still a possibility that it was Nate's, and then this conversation would just be more fodder for pain and regret later.

"Think about it, Waldorf," he told her, sensing the need to distance themselves from more intimate conversation. "Take a few days and let me know what you decide. I'll take care of anything."

"Thank you, Bass," she nodded. "I guess I should go. Serena's waiting for me at the bar."

"Then you'll probably need the limo," he joked.

"Ugh, please," she groaned. "If she's drunk, I may actually kill her."

"Try not to do anything homicidal tonight. You'll regret it in the morning."

He walked her to the door, and she turned around to say goodnight. "Do you mean it, Chuck?" she asked quietly, needing to hear him say it one more time before she walked out of here tonight. "Would you really be there if I decided I want to keep it?"

His face grew serious again, and for a moment, she thought he might try to kiss her. He was very, very close, and she could feel his breath on her face, but then he suddenly pulled back and did that strange thing where he seemed to be looking past her. "Bart was a shitty father," he said bluntly. "And I live in a hotel."

She frowned, really not sure what that had to do with anything. But after a moment it clicked, and she understood what he was trying to tell her. He and his father couldn't occupy the same space, no matter how large it was. He'd practically been exiled here, to the Palace, to live alone in a suite while he was still in high school. Her mother could be a holy terror, but at least they shared a _home_. Sometimes she forgot, when she was angry at him for his awful behaviour and his evil ways, that so much of what he was came from the way his father treated him. At least she had parents who had_ tried_ to raise her, no matter how flawed they were in their approach. There was no one to teach Chuck, and now he lived alone in this immense, luxurious suite. She never thought about how cold that was, how lonely it must be. Here was another of those rare moments where Chuck's vulnerabilities showed through, where the real person beneath the schemes and the inappropriate remarks revealed himself.

No one should have to live like this. And Chuck wouldn't force his own child to go through that. "I'll take some time to think," she promised as she felt the lump of emotion rising to her throat. She needed to get away before she started crying again. "I'll let you know what I decide."

"Goodnight, Blair."

"Night, Chuck."

For nearly a week, Blair kept everything a secret. Her mother called and informed her she was extending her stay in Paris, and for the first time, Blair was all-too relieved to have the penthouse to herself. Dorota was acting a bit suspicious by all the ice cream and the amount of time she spent locked in her room, but a well-placed glare always reminded the maid to keep out.

Serena came over almost every day after school, somehow managing to elude Humphrey long enough to spend an hour or two with her best friend. Sometimes they talked about what they should do, but more often, the blonde was a much-needed distraction from all the very real issues in Blair's world at the moment. She already felt herself distancing from Nate a little, but when he called and sounded concerned or acted like he missed her, she tried her hardest to be the doting girlfriend she'd always been. But school was the worst part. At school, she had to see Chuck and deal with the way his eyes always lingered too long. Now, it wasn't a look of lust, but more of confusion, concern, fear. She'd never seen Chuck Bass act afraid of anything, but fatherhood definitely warranted a little fear. Abruptly, he had stopped pestering her, and other than the sidelong glances in the courtyard, they didn't interact much. Even Nate noticed that he hadn't been around that much, but Blair just tried to cover up any suspicion with a joke and then tried to divert his attention. Still, she was beginning to realise that Chuck wasn't quite as soulless as she once believed, and instead of flaunting her relationship with Nate, she tried to tone it down a little, especially if he was around.

After six long days of contemplation that never really got her anywhere, Serena finally showed up after school carrying a myriad of brochures about abortion, adoption, and being a teenage parent. The hormones were wreaking havoc on Blair's emotions, and she burst into tears she realised she couldn't avoid this any longer. She _had_ to make a decision, and then she had to find out whose baby it was. She wasn't looking forward to either of those things, but it had to be done. It could only remain a secret for so long, and if she decided to get rid of it, she didn't have an unlimited amount of time.

"I don't know, S," she cried miserably as she flung a brochure in frustration. "How am I supposed to decide something like this? It changes everything!"

"I know it seems hard, B," her friend tried to commiserate. "But stop thinking about everything for a few seconds. Don't think about Chuck or Nate or school or anything else. What do _you_ want?"

She knew Serena would eventually ask her that, and it was the question she'd been dreading all along. Because she knew the answer. She knew what her heart wanted, but everything screamed that it was a terrible idea. She knew how she wanted this to turn out, years down the road, and she was terrified no one would agree. Everyone would tell her she was too young, she was unprepared, she was giving up her future. Maybe they were all right. Maybe she was crazy. But she just kept thinking about the future, how she wanted kids some day. And she thought about how she would feel when she had those children, how much she would love them. If she terminated this one, how could she live with that? How would she be able to look at her children and not think of the one she gave up? She would love this child as much as she would love any child she bore herself, so how could she pick those someday children and not pick this one, right now? She was supposed to take care of it. That was what people in their world did when things didn't go according to plan. But she wasn't just a young teenage mom in suburbia without the resources to take care of a child. She would have everything she needed, even if she was young and unprepared. She could learn. Maybe her future would change, maybe it wouldn't be what she always dreamed, but she didn't want to turn out like her mother, or like Lily, or Anne, or Bart. She didn't want to choose men or careers over her baby. She didn't want to decide her life was important than a child's. If she didn't choose this baby, she wasn't sure she would ever be fit to be a mother.

"I want to keep it," she confessed in a whisper. "I want it, Serena."

"I think you have your answer."

"It's not just that easy!" she protested, hating her friend, just a little, for not understanding. And how could she? It wasn't like everything had gone exactly as Serena wanted it, but…well, come to think of it, maybe it had. She slept with Nate, and Blair forgave her for that. She ran away to boarding school, and she forgave her for that, too. She had Cabbage Patch (why she wanted him was another story altogether), and he seemed to worship the very ground she walked on. It was like sunshine and rainbows just _poured_ out of her, so how could she of all people understand that there would be consequences to this decision, not the least of which was telling Nate. Or raising a child with Chuck Bass. Or telling her parents, or having a child at seventeen…

"Blair, your mom is going to support you," Serena attempted to encourage. "I'm sure it will take her a while to warm up to it, but you know she loves you and will help you with what you need. I'll be there for you, too. And now that my mom is apparently marrying Bart…"

"Do not go there," she warned her friend harshly. It was all too twisted to think about. If the baby was Chuck's, and his father married Lily, that made Lily sort of the baby's grandmother. And Serena would be an aunt, basically, and this whole thing was just too bizarre to even comprehend. "God, could your mom not marry someone a little less…"

"Bart?"

"Yes, exactly."

"Well, apparently not. It was either that or Rufus, and-"

"Do I really have to remind you that I'm pregnant and prone to extreme nausea?" Blair cut her off.

"Okay, okay, but the point I'm trying to make is that you won't be alone, B," Serena insisted. "It could be a lot worse. So I think, if you really want this baby, you should do it."

She thought again for another moment, thought about the little life growing inside of her, thought about holding it for the first time. It was inconvenient and ruining her life at the moment, but it was _hers_. "I do want it, Serena, I just…I don't know if I can do it."

"You're Blair Waldorf. You can do anything," Serena smiled brightly. "It'll be fine. You'll figure it out. And just think of all the _adorable_ clothes you'll get to buy!"

She had to laugh at that, but Serena did have a good point. No child of Blair Waldorf would be poorly dressed. "You have to promise me that you're not going to abandon me when Gossip Girl gets a hold of this," she demanded of her best friend.

"Of course not, B. You've stood by me," Serena reminded her. "Well, maybe with a little convincing. But you forgave me for everything, and I'm not going to just run away because of a little scandal. You shouldn't, either. You're better than that, and you know it."

"Everyone is going to hate me," she lamented. "I'll lose my crown."

"Please, Blair," Serena rolled her eyes. "Who could possibly take your place? Penelope? It would be chaos within one day. Or Iz? She's too empty-headed."

"There's always you," she couldn't help pointing out.

"First of all, I wouldn't do that to you. And second, what makes you think I even want that? I'm New Serena now. I'm dating Dan, and I'm being…normal," she laughed. "So I really don't need the drama of being queen. It's your thing, B. No one else could do it so well."

Blair wasn't so sure about that, but she did have more important things to worry about than losing her crown at Constance. It had meant everything to her for a while, but now she had to figure out who the father was, and then she had to tell them….both. That meant Nate found out about her and Chuck, and then he inevitably dumped her. Of course, there still was the possibility that Nate was the father, and then technically, she didn't _really _need to tell him about Chuck. She could go back to pretending it never happened, and Nate would be her first, and the entire month of November could just be one huge mistake.

Somehow, after their talk in his hotel room, she wasn't sure she could feel that way about Chuck. She'd waited so long for Nate, held out, wanted to make her first time special. There was a reason she picked Chuck, even if she didn't know it at the time. And there was a reason she didn't just write it off as a one-time thing. There was a reason she kept going back for more…

"Blair!" Serena shouted, apparently trying to get her attention.

"What? Why are you telling?"

"Does being pregnant somehow prevent you from being able to pay attention?" Serena asked incredulously. "You always look so far away."

"I'm just thinking, Serena. You could try it sometime."

Serena just rolled her eyes, apparently all-too accustomed to even Blair's worst moods. "I was _trying_ to tell you that you have to find out whose it is now. You need to tell them. How did it go with Chuck? You never really said."

"Awful, at first," she admitted. "But he says he's going to be there for me, no matter what I decide. I told him I'd let him now when I made a decision."

"Do you think it's his?"

"I think….I think one time the condom broke," she confessed, feeling the heat rise to her cheeks.

"You don't know?" Serena asked sceptically.

"It's not like I have a lot of experience!"

"Okay, but B, it's pretty obvious. I mean…did _he_ say anything?"

"We might have been a little preoccupied, Serena."

"Please, do not say anything else," her friend warned, shuddering a little at the thought. "So you don't think that happened with Nate?"

"I don't think so," she shook her head, remembering the times they'd been together. It hadn't been quite as…heated…as it had been with Chuck, so she had to think she would have noticed.

"Okay, wait, give me your computer," Serena demanded. "I have an idea."

Blair stood up and grabbed the laptop off the table and brought it back over to the bed. Serena snatched it and seemed to be hard at work for a moment, then apparently found whatever she was looking for. "Okay, do you remember the last time you had your period?"

"It was the day of that awful English lit test. But I don't know exactly what day that was."

"It's in your planner, right?" Serena asked knowingly.

Blair frowned, hating that her best friend knew her so well. Of course it was in her planner, and of course it wouldn't be _that_ hard to find, but she just really didn't want to know. She groaned in frustration and climbed out of bed once more, retrieving her planner from her bag. "It was November 4th."

Serena typed a few things, then stopped and waited a moment. "Okay, so based on that, this says you probably conceived between November 14th and November 22nd. When did you sleep with Nate?"

Blair didn't answer. It just confirmed what she already knew. There was practically no way it was Nate's. Maybe her period had just been really off; it wouldn't be the first time. She should have been starting again right around the time she and Nate slept together, so if her cycle was a little off…

"B, when did you sleep with Nate?" Serena asked her again, her tone gentle.

"Cotillion," she whispered. "December 5th."

Serena said nothing, closing the laptop and moving over to embrace her friend. Blair let her, and then she began to sob.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Huge thanks to everyone who has reviewed, added alerts, or just read this story! My goal is to update once a week, but grad school can, and often does, take total control of my life, so my apologies if it takes me longer to update! Also, thanks to people who have clarified on the timeline! Sorry this isn't all completely accurate, but I'll usually denote the timeframe in the chapters so hopefully it won't get too confusing. Hope you enjoy the chapter! Let me know what you think!

"I'm coming over," Blair told Chuck as soon as he answered his phone. "You're at the suite?"

"Blair, it's nine in the morning," he groaned. "Why are you calling? It's Saturday."

"I need to come over, and my mother is coming back this afternoon, so it needs to be now. So I'm coming over. I'll be there in twenty minutes." She snapped her phone shut, preventing him from objecting further. Her mother was finally returning from Europe today, and she had promised Blair they would spend the evening together. She wanted to just put this whole awful week behind her for now and enjoy what would probably be the last few peaceful days with her mother. Soon, she would have to confess what was going on, and then her mother was going to be furious. But she couldn't make Chuck wait until Monday, so it had to be right now.

She made a quick stop by her favourite bakery to pick them both up breakfast, and she very nearly ordered a coffee until she remembered caffeine was forbidden. She gave her stomach a quick glare and decided since she had to forego the coffee, Chuck was going to have to as well. So what if he was tired? She hadn't been able to sleep thinking about this conversation, and it was only fair that he have the same misfortune.

"Waldorf," he greeted, barely stifling a yawn as he opened the door twenty minutes later.

"Breakfast," she said, smacking him with the bag.

"Is this your peace offering for waking me up on a Saturday?" he raised an eyebrow. "Because I can think of many other-ow!" he cried as she stomped on his foot to stop him. "What was that for?"

"It is way too early for you to be perverted."

"Yes, why is it so early?" he asked as he pulled his waffle from the bag and handed the rest back to her. She plopped down on the couch with her croissant, waiting for him to join her.

"I need to talk to you, and my mother is on her way back from Paris," she explained. "I didn't think I should try to sneak away to come talk to you, and I've probably made you wait long enough."

"Almost a week," he acknowledged, slowly sitting down on the couch but making sure there was a safe distance between them. The sleep had disappeared from his eyes, but he looked decidedly uncomfortable, and it was almost funny to see the usually confident Chuck Bass so uncertain about anything. She would laugh, but she was probably just as terrified as he was. The last time she trusted him, it had turned into a disaster. Then again, a ripped dress at Cotillion and Nate punching a guy were hardly the worst things that could happen, now that she looked back. But it had seemed terrible at the time, and the point was, she didn't know how much she could trust Chuck. Deciding to do this was practically putting _everything_ in his hands, and a part of her still wondered if she was doing the right thing. "So…you've decided?" he prodded after a sufficiently awkward silence.

She took a deep breath, and then decided she might as well go with the band-aid method. "I'm keeping the baby," she announced, trying to stay calm as she spoke the words aloud. Inside she was panicking, reminding herself this was not the way the movie was supposed to go, the heroine wasn't supposed to be a teenage mother. "But I understand if you've changed your mind about wanting to be there. I'll have Serena, and my mother will probably come around eventually, and…I'll be fine," she tried to assure him. Of course, her tone betrayed her, but this was his test. If he took her for her word, he was a fool and she didn't want him in her life. If he really believed that, it was obviously because he was desperate for any way out and would gladly take the life preserver she just tossed him.

"This isn't Nate you're talking to," he responded, sounding almost amused. "Do you really expect me to believe that?"

"Well…no," she admitted. "But I won't force you, Chuck."

"I haven't changed my mind," he said seriously. "If that's what you want…"

"It is," she confirmed. "I just…it's my child, Chuck," she shrugged, not sure how else to explain her decision to him. To be honest, it was probably one of the first selfless things she'd ever done, so it might come as a bit of a shock to him that she was really willing to put everything on the line. It would cost her Yale, it would cost her friends, it would cost the reputation she'd spent seventeen years trying to perfect. Nothing from her meticulous plans was going to happen now; she was starting anew with no idea where she was headed. The thought brought all her fears and insecurities bubbling to the surface, and she choked a little on a sob. "I'm really scared," she confessed, dropping her head into her hands so he wouldn't see her face as it crumpled.

After a moment, she felt his arms wrap around her, and she felt herself being held. He pressed his lips to the top of her head, and for a glorious moment, she felt safe again. She didn't pull out of his embrace right away, even when she calmed again, wanting to pretend the rest of the world didn't exist. As soon as she reflected on whose arms were holding her, however, she abruptly sat up and pulled away, wiping at her eyes. With her hormones so crazy, it was easy for her emotions to get the best of her, and she had to remember who she was dealing with. Chuck was the only one who could actually out-game her, and though she knew he was being sincere about supporting her in this, she couldn't just allow herself to fall right back into the trap of _being _with him. He might not want to be a terrible father the way Bart had been to him, but that didn't automatically mean she could trust him. He lied, he schemed, and the chances of him keeping his attention on _one_ girl for more than a week were slim, at best.

"What now?" Chuck asked her.

"I need to find a doctor. As soon as possible, I guess. And someone discreet, of course."

"Of course," he nodded thoughtfully. "I think I could arrange that."

"Do I even want to know how you would go about something like that?" she challenged, recalling his words from the other day. He claimed he'd never paid for an abortion before, but that didn't mean he hadn't knocked a girl up at some point. He'd probably slept with more women than she would ever care to know, so the odds were probably against him. The thought of being just one of several made her feel a little sick, and she really hoped she wasn't about to lose her breakfast.

"Calm down, Waldorf. I did some research."

"You did what?"

"Research, okay?" he asked, obviously embarrassed. "I looked up some doctors. I recognised a few of the names. My father knows a lot of people. I think I can take care of it."

"Oh," she said softly, her stomach settling once more. She silently thanked her future son or daughter for going easy on her this morning. Throwing up all over Chuck's suite was probably not the way either of them wanted this to go.

"Do you have any idea whose it might be?"

_Yes, a very good idea_, she thought wryly, but somehow, she didn't feel like she could just come right out and say it. "Nate was really careful," she informed him softly.

"I tried, Blair," he defended himself weakly. "We used condoms."

She flushed a little, knowing he might be upset by her next little tidbit. "I think one might have broken," she confessed without looking up. "There was one time…I thought it might have, but then I convinced myself…did you not feel anything? Ever?"

"I don't know, Blair," he breathed helplessly. "There were a few times that I'd been drinking. It's possible. I was a little…preoccupied."

It was the first time she'd ever heard Chuck Bass express any remorse over sex, and it was almost a little funny. "Me too," she laughed shortly. But there was really nothing humourous about this situation. She should have stopped him as soon as she started to suspect the condom might have broken. In retrospect, she could remember that night perfectly. It was right before Thanksgiving, she was feeling uncertain about everything but excited to see her father. There was something strangely exciting about sneaking around with Chuck, and she felt a sort of giddiness she'd never felt around Nate when she would show up at his suite or he would surprise her at her penthouse. That night he texted her, asked her to come over, and she'd made sure to wear her favourite lingerie beneath her dress. She tasted the scotch on his breath as soon as they started kissing, and she could tell his drunkenness was fuelling his lust as his hands quickly slipped beneath her dress. She was new to this whole seduction thing, and she felt so powerful when he wanted her, desired her, worshipped her in a way Nate never had. So when she felt something and thought the condom might have broken, she didn't stop him. She was afraid to look ridiculous, afraid she just didn't know what she was talking about and would embarrass herself. He was Chuck Bass, for God's sake! She couldn't panic about the condom, and surely _he _would know. Then again, she knew how he hated holidays, and she knew he was drunk. He was sleeping with his best friend's fairly recent ex-girlfriend, and even worse, he was making it into a regular thing instead of his usual one night affairs. Maybe he wasn't in any better shape to stop things than she was, even if he was the expert.

"You don't know how far along you are?" he asked, breaking her out of the guilty reverie.

"No," she shook her head. "I can't know for sure without seeing the doctor."

"I'll try to get the appointment for Monday."

Monday. That was only two days from now. This was all happening too fast, and she wasn't sure she was ready for the next step. "Maybe we should wait a little longer," she suggested.

"Why would you want to do that?" he asked in confusion. "We need to know, Blair."

"Nate doesn't even know we slept together," she whispered, dropping her face to her hands again, this time in shame. What had happened to her life to bring her to this point? She'd been so perfect for so long. It was Serena who took too many chances, who lived her wild life and practically begged for trouble. Why wasn't it Serena wondering who the father of her baby was? Why wasn't Serena the one dealing with this huge, colossal mess?

"Please tell me you're worried about more than hurting Nate's feelings," Chuck spat, obviously angry that she would even bring it up.

"What do you expect me to say, Chuck? What do you want me to do? If I tell him I'm pregnant, he's going to assume it's his!"

"So tell him the truth! Tell him you slept with me! Multiple times!"

"And then tell him I'm pregnant?" she asked incredulously. "And I don't know which one of you is the father? That sounds like a great plan, Chuck! That way I can be sure that if he is the dad, he'll want nothing to do with either of us!"

Chuck immediately recoiled as though she'd slapped him, and she instantly felt guilty for even bringing up the possibility that it was Nate's baby. As soon as she felt it, she wasn't sure _why _she felt guilty. It _could_ be Nate's baby, and Chuck was clearly convinced it was his.

"You don't really believe that's his," he muttered under his breath. He was trying to keep the hurt from his voice, but she couldn't help detecting it there, and it made her wonder why he cared so much. She remembered what he said about the butterflies, and she realised, maybe for the first time, that this might not just be a passing thing for him. Chuck Bass had never had a girlfriend before. Maybe this was what happened when he actually started to care about someone. She hated herself for feeling even the tiniest bit delighted in that when she knew what a mess they were in. Besides, this icould/i be Nate's baby, and then what?

"Do you actually want this to be your child?"

The hesitation was all she needed to hear.

"Chuck," she murmured.

"It's not like I'm excited about the idea of being a father," he snapped before she could say anything else. "I'm just not excited about the idea of you being bound to him forever, either."

Oh God, she'd barely even thought of that. Forever? Did he want to be bound to _her_ forever? It was laughable that Chuck Bass would even consider such a thing, but he looked awfully serious. And he did have a point. Whoever the father was, she was stuck with him. Her child would always have half of his DNA, and their lives would be forever intertwined.

"Just tell me, Blair," he demanded. "Do you think it's his?"

"No, I don't. I think it's yours," she told him honestly. "But the truth is, we don't know."

"Then we need to find out. You can't tell Nate until you know."

She nodded heavily, knowing he was right. If she told Nate about Chuck or about the baby, it would just cause a scene. She could keep it a secret for now. She was carrying another life inside of her, so she could wait until she knew. She needed answers first. When she knew whose baby this was, she could actually deal with the situation. She would either end whatever was happening with her and Chuck and commit herself to making it work with Nate, or she would end it it with him, once and for all, and figure out how to be the mother of a Baby Bass. Until then, there was too much uncertainty, too many emotions at stake. "Serena found this calculator last night. It was online."

"Calculator?" he asked, clearly not understanding.

"To try to figure out my conception date."

"Oh," he swallowed hard. "And?"

"If it was right, I think I'm eight to nine weeks pregnant."

"When did you and Nate…." he trailed off, and she was glad he didn't finish that sentence. There was something just too wrong about Chuck discussing her sex life with Nate, and she needed to be spared the worst of it right now.

"About five weeks ago."

He swallowed again and nodded, but he didn't say anything.

"If I'm right, it was probably before Thanksgiving."

Again, he nodded, but he didn't say anything. She noticed that his face had drained a little of its normal colour as the reality hit home. He had believed it to be his, but there was just something about hearing it in facts. The truth of the matter was, if that calculator was right, she'd been pregnant for weeks before she and Nate had sex.

It was the first time she ever thought if that way, and suddenly her stomach really did decide to turn on her. She rushed to the bathroom as fast as she could, landing on her knees just in time to lose the breakfast she so recently ate. _I was pregnant with Chuck's baby when I had sex with Nate_. The fact that she'd faked her virginity for him just made it that much worse. When she told him…when he found out that she was not actually a virgin _and_ that said virginity had been taken by his best friend several weeks prior, he would hate her. He would loathe her and probably never speak to her again. It was probably up there with the worst things she'd ever done, and long after there was nothing left in her stomach she continued to heave.

By the time she was finished throwing up, she was also crying. She heard his footsteps in the bathroom, unsure, uncertain, and a part of her loved him for it even when she hated him. He'd been her friend for a long time, but a majority of that time, she mostly thought of him as a drunk womanizer. He was fun to hang out with, he made her laugh, he was good at scheming, and she knew that somehow he'd been a good friend to Nate. But since that night at Victrola, she'd started to see another side of him. Since her birthday, she'd realised he had feelings, too. And now, Chuck Bass the boozer was trying so hard to be a man about this even when she could see the terrified little boy in his eyes.

"Blair?" he asked in concern.

"I'm fine," she managed as she wiped at her tears, embarrassed to be both sick and sobbing in front of him.

"Can I-"

"Leave me alone, Chuck!" she cried, lashing out at him in frustration and fear and all of these terrible emotions, not the least of which was the horrible, racking _guilt. _ She heard him retreat from her hormonal rage, which only made her feel worse, so she continued to crouch on the beautiful marble floors of his bathroom and cried until the tears finally dried up.

She half expected him to be gone when she emerged, her eyes still red but her cheeks mostly dry. Instead, he was sitting on the bed holding a glass of something she prayed wasn't alcohol so early this morning and a bottle of water next to him on the nighstand. "Here," he offered it to her.

"Thanks," she said quietly. He didn't respond, and she noticed him clenching his jaw, his hand wrapped tightly around his glass. So maybe she didn't have a monopoly on feeling angry right now, but she wasn't entirely sure if he was mad at her or just at the situation they suddenly found themselves in.

"Are you okay?" he asked her without looking at her.

"Yeah, just…morning sickness and hormones.

He nodded and took back a sip of his drink, apparently deep in thought. "Look," he began after a moment. "It's only two or three weeks' difference. If it will make things easier, we don't have to tell anyone."

Confused, she stepped over to the bed and sat down. "What are you talking about?"

"You're with Nate now," he barely managed through his clenched teeth. "I guess you always were."

"Chuck," she began, realising where he was going with this and not liking it at all. There was only one thing worse than pretending she was a virgin, and that was _continuing_ to pretend like she'd been a virgin. It would mean lying to Nate forever, acting like Chuck's baby was actually his.

"I won't tell if you won't tell, is what I'm saying."

The little flutters she had felt before suddenly kicked it up a notch at his proposal. He was willing to do that for her. He was willing to lie to his best friend…to the whole world. He was willing to step aside and let her and his _child _ be with Nate instead. It was misguided and wrong and would never work, but it was also selfless. And more than that, it was something Nate would never do. Not for her, anyway. Maybe for Serena, but never for her.

Before she could really think about what she was doing, she climbed further into the bed and laid down next to him, propping herself up on her elbow as she thought about him and about Nate and about the poor innocent little baby caught in the middle of their teenage disaster. She really was a Lifetime special now, and it disgusted her. Pregnant at seventeen and not quite certain if the father was her boyfriend or his best friend. There would be enough scandal to last her the rest of her life. She should be worrying about what was going to happen to her, what her mother was going to say, what was going to happen to her dreams of going to Yale, but at the moment, all she could think of was the fantasy of a life with Nathaniel Archibald. When had that glorious fantasy turned into this hollow emptiness? When had her childhood dream turned into delusion instead?

"I don't think he really loves me," she confessed, not sure if she wanted Chuck to hear it or herself.

"What are you talking about?" he scoffed, but he didn't sound all that convincing.

"He couldn't even try to find me at the masquerade," she reminded him as she dropped her gaze down to the luxuriously soft sheets. She loved this bed. She loved this room. She didn't want to think about how many women had been here before her, but then again, she was probably the first to return. She was certainly the first to keep Chuck's attention, and it seemed appropriate that he'd had a few of his firsts with her since she'd had so many with him. "He only wanted me back when he knew I was with someone else," she continued. "He tried to get back together with me to help his dad's business deal."

Chuck opened his mouth to say something, probably feeling the need to defend his best friend, but what could he say? Everyone knew anyway. Nate slept with Serena. He was her date to that wedding and he slept with her best friend. No matter what Blair had done herself, they were broken up. It had been over for a while, if they were both honest with themselves. Sleeping with Chuck wasn't half the betrayal that sleeping with Serena had been, and Nate of all people should know how jealous she was of the beautiful blonde who always got the attention. But that was just the problem. Nate was always oblivious. Nate never picked up on anything she was feeling, or if he did, he didn't want to know. Sometimes she felt like he was looking right through her, and even though he'd been different lately, more engaged, more interested, she had to wonder how long it would last. They'd been together for a long time, and it wasn't like people just changed overnight. He couldn't be bored and disinterested one day and then totally in love with her the next.

"Nathaniel cares about you," Chuck finally noted, though it hardly sounded like a ringing endorsement. "You know he does."

"Not the way he does Serena. He'll never feel like that with me, will he?"

"Blair…"

"If the baby is yours," she cut him off, unable to bear the answer she already knew. "Are you really going to be there? Because this is going to be really awful, and I need to know."

He immediately turned to look at her, and she was shocked by the amount of pain in his eyes. He looked positively distraught by all of this…maybe as much as she was. It was another sign that maybe Chuck Bass did have a soul and human emotions, despite all the indications to the contrary. "I'm not good at any of this," he said honestly, his tone full of self-loathing and regret. "I can't…_comfort _you," he stressed.

"You comfort me, Chuck," she countered. "Sometimes you're the only one who does."

He laughed humourlessly, like she was joking, lying to him. "I won't be good at any of it, Blair. I don't know anything about children. I don't know anything about _parents_. I don't-"

"I didn't ask if you were good at it," she cut him off, mid-sentence. "I asked if you would be there."

Their eyes locked, and she tried to read what he was thinking behind those dark eyes. Sometimes he seemed like an enigma she would never understand, and other times it was like they were the same person. "I'll do whatever it takes," he answered firmly. And despite everything, there was something profoundly reassuring about his steady tone. Chuck Bass might be a lot of things, and he might have a terrible reputation, but he was loyal, and he would take care of her. She'd been so afraid of finding out whether it was his or not because she was terrified he would run away from this. Maybe he had grown up, or maybe there was just more to him than met the eye, but she was beginning to see that him being the one might not be so terrible after all.

"I guess we should just find out for sure then," she managed without letting her voice tremble too much. "You'll let me know when you work something out?"

"I'll give you the details as soon as I can."

There was so much left to discuss, so many things they needed to figure out, but God, she was tired. Her mind had been running overtime this whole week, trying to make sense of the mess she'd gotten herself into. They needed to discuss Nate and how they were going to tell him, they needed to discuss the arrangements and how they were going to take care of a baby and finish school. Then there was college to talk about, because obviously, it would be hard to focus on Yale with an infant, and if they were doing this together, she wouldn't want to be too far apart. Before any of that, they needed to tell their parents and deal with the ramifications of that bombshell, which was certain to have devastating fallout. There was no telling how Bart would react, and Eleanor would be furious. There would be shouting and screaming and probably a very long period of silence, and Eleanor would certainly protest to her keeping the baby. Her mother would do just about anything to avoid a scandal, and it would take a lot to resist her.

Just thinking of everything brought a terrible wave of crushing anxiety, and she had no idea how she was going to spend the rest of this weekend pretending nothing was wrong. "Blair," he said quietly, stirring her from the endless parade of doubts and fears in her mind. "Everything will work out."

"I'm not so sure," she shook her head sadly.

"It will," he repeated.

"What if it's not yours?" she asked, her voice dropping to a whisper. She didn't want to say it, but he'd barely acknowledged the uncertainty, and she needed to know what would happen if it really was Nate's.

"We'll worry about that later."

"Chuck, I'm serious. I'm not going to be able to do this if you hate me. If you get attached only to find out it's Nate's, you will."

He took a deep breath, and she found herself holding hers. "I won't hate you," he promised. "But if it is his, this is over. For good."

For some reason, she could tell it wasn't a threat. She could tell he was explaining to her why a part of him hoped this really was his baby, despite the obvious problems with that situation. "I should get going. My mother will be home soon."

"I'll text you when I know something."

"Okay. Thanks, Chuck," she forced herself to smile.

"Bye, Blair."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: First, I apologise for not updating this sooner. I'm a grad student, and it's killing me at the moment. Second, this chapter is a bit of a filler. I thought we needed to get Chuck's perspective on the whole thing, but I promise that after this chapter, the action and drama will start to pick up! Huge thanks to everyone who has read/reviewed/added alerts. Thanks so much for reading, and I'd love to hear what you think!**

_"Though I have the strength to move a hill, I can hardly leave my room. So I sit perfectly still, and I'll listen for a tune, while my mind is on the moon." - Alexi Murdoch, Wait _

As soon as Blair left, Chuck returned to the open laptop on the desk and pulled up the potential list of doctors. This whole thing felt surreal, but he couldn't allow himself to think too much as he quickly searched each of them on the internet, trying to determine who the best choice might be. When he narrowed it down, he placed a few calls and decided the person who could offer the earliest appointment would be the winner. In the end, he used his charm and his father's name to convince Laura Spalding to squeeze them in for an appointment on Monday, shortly after school. They would probably need Serena's help to keep this a secret and to keep it firmly away from Gossip Girl, so he reluctantly sent her a text, asking her to drop by when she could.

When all that was done, it was still fairly early. He contemplated going back to sleep, but he knew he'd never be able to now that he knew Blair was keeping the baby. He'd thought of little else the entire week, and even copious amounts of scotch and many hours of smoking with Nate hadn't been able to get it – or her – off his mind. Nate's company was really the last he wanted, but with Blair attempting to avoid her boyfriend as much as possible, he'd been showing up here unannounced. Chuck had to spend the whole week listening to Nate complain about Blair's sudden unavailability, and it was wearing thin.

This guilt thing wasn't helping, either. Remorse wasn't a feeling he was accustomed to (if he was accustomed to feelings at all), but Nate had been his best friend for as long as he could remember. Most of his life, he'd always been a little jealous that Nate had doting parents and as close to a stable family life as anyone on the Upper East Side could achieve. Of course, that façade had recently dissolved, but at least Nate had been cared for. Eventually, Chuck had found a way to revel in his lack of parental supervision, and then it had been Nate who was always jealous of the girls and the booze and endless supply of weed. When his best friend had gotten locked down to Blair, Chuck didn't really think much of it. It made sense, after all. Nate was the golden boy of St. Jude's, and Blair was the princess – eventually queen – of Constance.

If he was honest with himself, as he very rarely was, there had been times, over the years, that he looked at Blair and wondered what it would be like to have her…or at least someone like her. She was gorgeous and smart and the only girl in the world who could keep up with him, but her attention was lavished solely on princely Nathaniel. He knew he would find it obnoxious to have a girlfriend constantly wanting to talk or be together, but he still wondered, from time to time.

Over the last year or so, the couple had just become a source of amusement for Chuck. Nate was a good friend, but he never could pay attention for long. That he'd managed to stay with Blair at all was sort of amazing, but it had been dragging him down for a while. Nate always had a thing for Serena, as most guys did, and Chuck caught him more than a few times lusting after the blonde when he had a beautiful brunette right there at his disposal. As Nate grew more and more detached from Blair, he spent more and more time with Chuck, complaining about having a girlfriend at all and getting high as much as possible.

All things considered, he didn't think it was so bad that he had sex with Blair. Nate didn't want her. He could have had her, but he chose not to. So there she was, alone with Chuck, and suddenly he saw her in a whole new light. She'd always been a friend, but she'd also always been Nate's girlfriend, and thus she was strictly off limits. He could make smarmy remarks, but he knew he could never, ever touch. The moment that was over, she got up on the stage and showed him a side of her he had a feeling no one knew existed. The uptight and controlling Blair Waldorf was human after all, and God, she was spectacular. He remembered everything about the way she looked that night, recalled every perfect curve of her body. She wasn't Nate's anymore, and in the limo, as she poured herself into his kiss, it felt like she was his.

As soon as it was over, he knew something had happened to him. Something really terrible and something completely unexpected. Because he had feelings for her. Real, actual feelings. The kind that inspired him to buy a diamond necklace, the kind that made him actually feel sorry when her heart was broken on her birthday. He never wanted to fix anyone before, but he wanted to make her happy that night.

For several glorious weeks, he carried on his secret affair, knowing he wasn't ready to take it public and knowing Nate probably needed more time. But he didn't feel bad about what he'd done with her. How could he, when she was suddenly buoyant and carefree? _He_ inspired that, and it was probably the first time he'd had that effect on anyone. So they carried on, the secret quality making it that much hotter to both of them. He planned to keep it that way, and then Nate screwed it all up.

He regretted Cotillion, regretted the way he ruined her night. It wasn't his intention, and he paid dearly when he saw her disappearing into a room with Nate. So he ran away to Monaco, and continents away he still thought about her.

He never once felt guilty about Nate. Until now. His rediscovery of Blair seemed genuine, for now. It probably wouldn't last, but at the moment, Nate wanted her. He really, sincerely wanted her. He got champagne and flowers and a car, and he tried for the first time in years. From their little displays at school, they at least appeared to be happy to be together once more. That would end very, very soon, and Chuck was at least partially to blame. Truthfully, he wanted it to end, and hoped it would so he might get a second shot with her. But he had no intentions of breaking them up. He tortured her and pretended that he might, but they both knew he wouldn't do that to Nate, the one person who consistently cared about him. Now, it seemed, he wouldn't have a choice.

Coming to terms with the fact that he had feelings for Blair had been hard enough. Eventually he accepted that she had some powerful effect over him, but he never pictured it playing out like this. He tried not to picture it at all, but he hadn't been all that successful. Now, he just had to hope she was worth this, because he'd be dealing with her forever.

_Forever_. It was a word that never even entered his mind, and it was nearly enough to send him running back to Monaco, or somewhere else where she would never find him. He wasn't _dad_ material, and in all likelihood, the kid would be better off being raised by Blair. But that clearly wasn't what she wanted, and after taking her virginity, ruining any shot of her becoming Mrs. Archibald, and effectively ending life as she knew it, he probably owed it to her to stick around no matter how terrifying the thought.

_I need something to drink,_ he thought, then glanced at the clock and found it was probably too early for that. Too early had never really been a problem before, however, so he seriously contemplated pouring himself something. Before he decided, someone knocked on his door.

"Who is it?" he called, not really wanting to be interrupted right now.

"Serena," came the reply.

Great. A visitor. "Sis," he greeted cheekily as he reluctantly swung the door open. "You couldn't bother to call before dropping by?"

"I figured if I did, you'd find a reason not to be here."

"You're smarter than people give you credit for."

"Charming, Chuck," she rolled her eyes. "Are you going to let me in?"

"That depends. What do you want?"

"Just let me in," she demanded, pushing past him and entering the suite. "Have you talked to Blair?" she asked as he shut the door behind them.

"She just left."

"So you know you're going to be a father."

"That's not necessarily true. We'll find out Monday. And while you're here, I guess it's a good time to talk to you about that. I think we're going to need your help evading Gossip Girl for Blair's appointment," he informed her.

"What do you want me to do?" she asked sceptically.

"She'll go home with you after school, and I'll go straight to the appointment. I'll send a car to get her, and it will look like she's just going home."

"Yeah…about that," she said slowly, doing that thing where she bit her lip when she had something she needed to confess. "I'm actually not just here to talk about Blair. Now that our parents are getting married…"

"You've got to be kidding me."

"Unfortunately, no," she answered, and he could tell she really meant that. But he couldn't blame her, really. He'd never exactly made her life easier…and he had no intentions of starting now. "They were going to tell you at dinner tonight, but I said I'd come by now so you could go ahead and pack your things. I thought we should talk about B before you move in."

"I'm supposed to move out today?" he asked, hating his father for thinking any of it was a good idea.

"I'm afraid so. Which means that Blair coming home with me is pretty much the same thing as her coming home with you."

"No one knows anything happened between us. I won't go home, and no one will know she'll be with me," he reasoned.

"You're probably right," she agreed. "I have to say, I'm impressed you're taking this seriously. I thought you'd be halfway around the world by now."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Sis."

"First of all, don't call me that," she warned him. "And second, it's not like you haven't earned my distrust."

"This isn't high school games, Serena," he reminded her pointedly. "Do you think I don't know that?"

"I don't know, Chuck, do you?" she asked, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow in challenge. "Because this is serious. Her whole life is changed now, and she's going to need someone who can actually support her. And I swear to God, Chuck, if you hurt her…"

"Retract the claws," he drawled. "I'm not going to hurt her. I know what she's putting on the line, and I'm going to be there to help her."

"You better. I convinced her to come talk to you in the first place, you know. I told her that it might not be so terrible. Please don't prove me wrong."

"Are you done? I apparently have some packing to do," he reminded her wryly.

"Yeah, I'm done," she nodded. "When are you going to tell your dad and Eleanor?"

"One thing at a time, Serena. First we need to confirm that it's mine. We'll deal with the parentals after that."

"And Nate?"

"Is that really any of your business?"

"He's my friend, too," she argued.

"Yes, we all know what good _friends_ you are," he smirked.

"Ugh, you're disgusting. I hope the kid takes after Blair."

"Well, we agree on something, for once. Nice bonding with you, Sis."

"Don't call me that!"

"Better get used to it. You're going to be hearing it a lot more once I move in with you," he taunted.

"Leaving," she told him as she turned around and headed for the door.

"Wait, Serena," he called after her. "You haven't told Humphrey anything about this, have you?"

"No, of course not," she shook her head.

"Are you sure?" he asked, not entirely positive he could believe her. She had terrible judgment, especially when it came to men, and he needed to know that their secret was safe until they were ready for the world to know.

"Not a word, Chuck," she promised. "He thinks Blair and I have been working on a project."

"Good. Just make sure you don't say anything to him…or his sister. If anyone finds out…"

"Yeah, I know," she assured him. "See you at dinner."

Fantastic. Not only was his family expanding by three (or five, considering recent developments), he also had to _live _with them. Maybe as a child he wanted siblings and parents, but he'd spent seventeen years without either, and he wasn't really looking forward to the sudden change of plans. Of course now that his dad was with Lily, he would try to act like a parental figure in Chuck's life, but surely Lily would see through the charade pretty quickly. And in a few days, it was all going to blow up. He wondered if maybe it would be wise to just leave some of his stuff here anyway. As soon as his father found out about Blair and the baby, he'd probably send him packing once more.

He was bitter and sullen the rest of the day as he reluctantly packed his belongings. The penthouse was nice, but he could already imagine how cramped it would feel with five of them under one roof. As much fun as it might be to torture Serena, that wasn't real high on his list of things to think about at the moment. He made sure to pack the scotch away safely, fairly certain it would come in handy soon. Just as he was about to walk out, he remembered to text Blair, informing her about the appointment as well as his change of address. She didn't respond, and he hoped that meant she was enjoying her time with her mother.

"Charles!" Lily exclaimed happily, enfolding him in an unwanted and unwelcome hug as soon as he arrived at the penthouse.

"Lily," he acknowledged. "It's very nice to see you."

"You too," she beamed. "I'm so pleased that we're all going to be here together now. Now I know it's going to be an adjustment at first, but your father and I are very committed to making this family work."

He wanted to roll his eyes and remind her that this was Bart Bass they were talking about - a man who didn't really _do_ family, but he'd only been here two minutes. The time to tear everything apart would come later. For now, he just wanted to keep the peace. "Thank you for inviting me into your home," he managed politely.

"It's my pleasure," she assured him. "Let me just show you where your room is going to be."

It was a nice room, all things considered, and Lily left him to unpack before dinner in an hour. He took that opportunity to go ahead and start on the liquor, sure he would need it to get through the family dinner to come. He was feeling the welcome effects of the scotch by the time he was called back downstairs, and Serena looked at him suspiciously as he sat down at the table. The conversation was as stilted as he imagined it would be, but Eric certainly tried to keep things light and enjoyable, and Chuck had to admit he kind of liked the kid. It wouldn't be so bad having a little brother.

A sister, he could do without.

As soon as they were dismissed, he headed back to his room to continue what he started earlier. He planned on getting himself completely mind-numbingly wasted so he could just not think for a while, and he ignored about a dozen texts from Nate. With all the self-loathing and guilt, he couldn't face his best friend, and continued to drink alone.

He was happily intoxicated when someone knocked on his door, then didn't wait for a response before barging in. "Chuck, Nate keeps trying to text you. Do you want to go out?" Serena asked, obviously annoyed. "I want him to leave me alone. Dan and I have a date."

"Tell Nate I'm unpacking."

"You could tell him yourself."

"Or you could do it for me."

She was about to walk away when she must have realised what was going on. "Are you _drunk?"_ she asked incredulously. "Are you crazy? What the hell is wrong with you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Are you kidding me?" she exclaimed furiously. "God, Chuck, you are so irresponsible!"

"Close the door if you insist on yelling at me," he instructed, unphased by her sudden bout of anger.

"I can't believe I actually thought you were acting like a grown up!"

"Serena!" he demanded. "Keep your voice down."

"I can't believe you're getting drunk alone in your room after everything. Don't you think you should be acting a little more mature now? What are you going to do, Chuck? How are you going to-"

"Stop it," he cut her off, his voice low in warning. The last thing they needed was one of their parents coming to inspect the source of her hysterics and overhearing the wrong thing.

She finally seemed to realise she couldn't just scream at him about this, but her expression was still seething when she lowered her voice. "You can't do this stuff anymore, Chuck," she told him angrily. "You're going to have to be there for Blair, to help her."

"Yes, I'm aware of that, Serena."

"Are you? Are you really? Because you seem to be acting just like you always do!"

"How I act is none of your business," he reminded her harshly.

"She's my best friend."

"And I'm not hurting her."

"No, but you will if you keep this up," she said, gesturing to the empty bottle of scotch on the night table.

"I think I've earned the right to get drunk and just forget about everything, and I've cleaned up your messes enough times that I know you're in no position to judge me. Now run along to Humphrey and leave me alone."

She started to respond, but before she could, the door opened once more to reveal Lily, looking concerned. "Serena?" she asked in confusion. "What's going on here? Were you two yelling?"

"It's nothing, Mom," Serena sighed. "Just Chuck being Chuck."

"Well, don't you think it's a little early for sibling rivalry?"

"He is not, nor will he ever be my brother," Serena insisted, and then she spun on her heel and disappeared. Thankfully, Lily followed after her, and he heard them arguing down the hallway as he was mercifully left alone with his drink. It was too bad he was going to need her help on Monday, but he knew she would assist them, if only for Blair's sake. The whole protective best friend thing was nice and all, but he could really do without her attitude at the moment. Of course he knew he wouldn't be able to drink himself into oblivion five nights a week or spend his weekends with drugs and whores after this, but spending one evening trying to forget that sad reality was hardly a capital offense.

The thought alone called for more scotch, and he took another slow sip, relishing in the burn down his throat. Maybe Serena was right about one thing: he was only going to end up hurting Blair in the end.

He never imagined he would care so much.


	5. Chapter 5

Their plan seemed to go off smoothly on Monday, and Blair was grateful for that small miracle as she found herself propped in a chair in the doctor's office. Chuck was sitting just a few feet away, and she was honestly surprised he actually showed up for this. She fully expected him to bail on her considering the gravity of the situation, but he had been here waiting when she and Serena pulled up. He really had taken care of everything, and now he was dutifully and patiently sitting by as she answered questions and talked to the doctor. She blushed as she was forced to talk about things she never imagined talking about in front of Chuck, but he remained a silent observer throughout the whole thing. They had confirmed the pregnancy, talked at length about appointments and tests to come, and now the doctor was preparing to draw some blood.

"Dr. Spalding?" she asked nervously, glancing over to Chuck to see how he reacted. "Is there a way for you to determine exactly how far along I am? Since my period can be a little irregular, I just want to know…"

"We'll check your hormone levels," the doctor nodded. "We can get a pretty good idea from there how far along you are."

"How precise is that?" Blair asked, still concerned. There was such a small timeframe, and she had been reading last night about different methods of paternity testing. None of them sounded fun, and she was fairly certain she would rather just get hit by a bus now than go through all of that.

Dr. Spalding looked up, obviously detecting the hesitation in her tone. Thankfully, Chuck seemed to have picked a good one, and she'd been pretty incredible the whole time. She smiled gently and set the clipboard down for a moment before speaking. "We typically wait to do an ultrasound until about 20 weeks," she explained. "But if you're feeling a little uncertain about the dates, we could go ahead and do one today. We can tell from the measurements how far along you are."

"Yes, let's do that," Chuck chimed in.

"Alright then," Dr. Spalding smiled pleasantly. "It might take me just a little while to get that set up, so let's go ahead and start the blood work so we can have that looked over."

Blair just nodded, suddenly feeling her heart start to race a little as she realised the enormity of it all. Soon they would know for sure, and she was honestly terrified. She felt herself beginning to panic, so she tried to focus on breathing while they waited for a nurse to come in to draw blood.

"You doing okay, Waldorf?" Chuck asked, obviously noting her current state.

"Not really," she admitted with a short laugh.

"Should I get you some water or something?"

"No. No, just…stay," she requested. They'd barely spoken all afternoon, but having someone here with her was at least a little calming, and if he left her alone, she was sure she would lose what little composure she still had.

Ten minutes later, she was fairly certain they'd taken about half her blood and she and Chuck were left alone again to wait for the results or Dr. Spalding with the ultrasound. She really wished there was a television or a decent magazine to look at, but there were just pregnancy and parenthood magazines, neither of which would distract her at all from her current situation.

"Can you talk to me?" she asked Chuck.

"What do you want to talk about?"

"I don't know. Anything. I just really want to not think right now."

He nodded thoughtfully and moved his chair a little closer. "I locked Serena out of her bathroom this morning."

"You what?" she laughed out loud. "Bass! She helped us today."

"She deserved it," he assured her.

"Is that why her hair looked so gross?"

"I'm afraid my dear sister wasn't able to shower before school today," he smirked.

"You're going to make her life miserable, aren't you?"

"Oh, I have every intention of doing so."

"Don't piss her off too much," she warned him. "She may be the only friend still talking to me after all of this."

He continued to tell her the highlights so far of living in Serena's penthouse, and it did distract her temporarily. It was definitely a living situation none of them had ever imagined, and it was just a little hilarious that Chuck and Serena were going to be siblings now. Fifteen minutes later, however, he was out of interesting tidbits to share, and she was back to worrying.

"Can you ask them to hurry?"

"I'm not sure it works like that, Waldorf."

She pouted at him and leaned her head back, trying to think of something else that might distract her. But all she could think about was Chuck and Nate and Nate and Chuck and what was going to happen when they told their parents about the baby. She just wanted to fast forward through all of it and never actually have to live it, because she knew it was going to be awful.

"Are you okay?" he asked her after a moment.

"What do you think?"

"Blair, try to relax," he urged. "There's nothing we can do right now."

"Why are they taking so long? Is it really that hard?"

"It's a blood test," he reminded her. "It takes a while."

"Well then why aren't they ready with the ultrasound?" she demanded. "Go tell them we aren't waiting all day."

He raised an eyebrow, but she was deadly serious, and he seemed to gather it was best for everyone if he just did as she said. He sighed as he sauntered out, and he returned a few minutes later, still alone. "They're working on it," he told her. "They did squeeze us in at the last minute, so we just have to be patient."

"Whatever happened to 'I'm Chuck Bass?'" she cried. "When did that stop working?"

"Relax," he admonished again, taking his seat by the wall once more. "They're doing everything they can. Even Chuck Bass can't rush science," he pointed out with a smirk.

"Don't do that," she pouted at him.

"Do what?"

"Try to be cute. Or funny. Or whatever is you're doing. Actually, just don't look at me."

"Glad to see the pregnancy hormones are really kicking in. You're going to be even more pleasant than usual."

"Something else is going to start kicking in if you don't shut up!" she threatened.

"You just said you wanted me to talk to you."

"Not anymore! Now be quiet," she ordered.

He did, and they sat there in silence for ten painful minutes before a nurse came to retrieve them and show them to another room for the ultrasound. This whole process had been terribly awkward with Chuck at her side, but she couldn't bring herself to kick him out. He had seen everything anyway, but there was something weird about having him here for the most private affairs. She held her breath as they started the ultrasound, and then suddenly, there was an image on the screen. She turned to look at it, and tears filled her eyes as she looked at the screen.

"What's that sound?" Chuck asked, stepping a little closer so he could hear as well.

"That's the baby's heartbeat," Dr. Spalding explained. "Normally we aren't able to hear it so early, but since we're doing the ultrasound like this, we can usually pick it up."

"It's so fast," Blair breathed, still staring in wonder at the screen. Up until now, it had been some vague, abstract concept, but there was actually a baby growing inside of her, a tiny little life, and she could actually _see_ it.

"Is that normal?" Chuck asked in concern.

"Oh yes, it's perfectly normal," the doctor assured them. She did something with the equipment, and cursors appeared on the screen. "Your baby is almost an inch," she announced. "About .9 inches right now, to be exact."

"An inch?" Blair asked, finding it hard to believe anything could be so impossibly tiny.

"Right on track," Dr. Spalding smiled. "With these measurements, you're about eight to nine weeks along. We'll cross-check that with your hormone levels, but I'd say our August 11th due date is just about right."

Blair sucked in a deep breath and shut her eyes, not sure what to feel. She had been almost sure it was him, and this was exactly what she expected, but she was still struggling to comprehend it. A few months ago he'd been her friend, her partner in crime, and her boyfriend's best friend. Now they were having a baby, a little baby with a heartbeat she could actually here, and it was terrifying and beautiful all at the same time. She opened her eyes again and looked to the screen once more, and she knew she'd made the right choice keeping her child. There was no way she could do anything else now, no matter what consequences she had to face. She just wasn't sure what it all meant, what she was supposed to do now that she was sure.

She and Chuck didn't speak for the next half hour, and soon, they received the results of the blood tests. Everything was normal, and her hormone levels were just as they suspected. She somehow managed to thank the doctor and get herself together, and then Chuck quietly led her back to the limo.

"I've been thinking…I think maybe I should tell Nate," he told her as the limo creeped steadily through traffic.

"Chuck? No!" she protested. "No, that's…I need to do it. I'm his girlfriend." She

realised that wasn't actually quite right and frowned. "_Was_ his girlfriend," she corrected. She couldn't very well be expecting a Bass baby while still dating an Archibald. "I should be the one to tell him."

"I would be far more comfortable with doing it myself," he informed her seriously.

"It's Nate!" she exclaimed incredulously. "He's not going to do anything crazy."

"Didn't the doctor say you should avoid situations that are overly stressful?" he asked pointedly.

"I'm seventeen and pregnant, Chuck," she rolled her eyes. "My mother's going to have a heart attack, my father might kill me, and if he doesn't, _your_ father certainly will. Not to mention school," she moaned, resting her head against the cool glass window. "I don't think I'm going to be able to avoid stressful situations."

"You're having my kid, Blair. Forgive me if I want to try to make things easier for you."

She softened a little at that, lifting her head to turn at look at him. God, he really was trying. And she was just a bitch. "He's going to hate us," she state dolefully. No matter how bad a boyfriend Nate had been to her over the last few years, he didn't deserve this. No one deserved to find out his girlfriend had, up until recently, been having rather raucous sex with another guy, and had since faked her virginity for him. Somehow, she didn't think Nate would find any irony in the fact that while faking her virginity, she had actually been pregnant with his best friend's child. Just a hunch.

"Yes, he probably is," he acknolwedged, betraying no emotion. But she knew his emotions had to run a lot deeper than that mere admission. Nate had been basically his only friend since they were children. For as long as she could remember, the two of them had been off in their own world, doing their own thing. Chuck could get Nate to do just about anything, and in some strange way, she knew Chuck would do just about anything for Nate. There was a bond there that Chuck shared with no one else, and it frightened her a little that he didn't just abandon her for his best friend. There were a lot of things about this new Chuck Bass that frightened her; they were sailing into uncharted territory, and everything was at stake. Everything about his reactions over the last week indicated he would be there, that he wasn't going to leave her now when she desperately needed him, but everything she'd ever known about him suggested otherwise. How did she know what to trust?

She sighed and tried to recall the picture on the screen that made everything seem worth it. "Maybe we should tell him together," she suggested.

"I realise you are going to get your way a majority of the time, Waldorf, but how about you let me win this one. If he's going to lash out at someone, I'd prefer it to be me."

"Fine," she finally agreed and sighed dramatically. It would be nice to avoid the look on his face when he first learned about her betrayal, but it wasn't like she could avoid him forever, as much as she would like to. And she was going to be miserable until the truth was out there…and then probably for another eight months or so after. "I don't want to go home," she announced suddenly. "Can we go somewhere?"

"Go somewhere?" he raised an eyebrow. "Where would we go?"

She frowned when she realised the majority of her time with Chuck had been in a bar or in a bed. "Shopping?" she asked innocently, naming the first thing that came to mind. To his credit he held back a groan, and he slid open the glass partition to inform the driver to change course.

They soon found themselves on Madison Avenue, and she couldn't help smiling just a little as they climbed out of the limo and burrowed into their coats before hurrying towards the line of stores. He smirked as she skipped past La Perla, then dutifully followed her around Fred Leighton. After that, they headed to Barney's. She expected him to wander around the men's department, or at least find some way to occupy himself, but instead, he casually lingered behind her as she picked out dozens of things to try on. She would only be slender for another month or two, and something about the horror of a baby bump made her want to try on as many beautiful things as she possibly could. Maternity clothes would not be nearly so lovely.

"Do you want to…find something to do?" she asked as she headed towards the dressing room.

"Aren't you trying things on?"

"Well, yes, but…" she trailed off. Certainly he wasn't planning on waiting…

"You're not going to show me?"

"Oh. Well. Fine." She spun on her heel and disappeared into the fitting room, not entirely sure why she was unnerved by his sudden desire to spend time with her. They probably _should_ be doing things together, since they would all too soon be raising a baby together, but Chuck was just not the type to accompany his girlfriend on a shopping trip and wait patiently while she tried on dress after dress. _Oh God, I just thought of Chuck Bass as my boyfriend_, she realised, instantly turning her attention to the room full of clothes to try to distract herself from the mental slip. She hadn't even broken up with Nate, and even when that was done, she honestly had no idea what she wanted from Chuck. She needed his support, and she wanted him to be a part of his child's life, but them? She just couldn't even think about now.

She first tried on a fitted black turtleneck dress with a daring cut-out that exposed much of her chest. It was far more Serena than Blair, but the material clung to her still-flat stomach and allowed her to forget, for one instant, that she was pregnant. She still stared at her reflection self-consciously, not sure she could step out of the fitting room. But then she rememberd that Chuck had seen her in just her La Perlas, as well as just now at the doctor's office, and decided that modesty had gone out the window.

His smirk indicated his pleasure with the outfit, and she felt the heat rising to her cheeks as he surveyed her appearance. "We'll take it," he said smoothly, his eyes lingering near the cut-out.

"Chuck," she rolled her eyes.

"It's hardly a practical choice, all things considered."

"That's the point, Basshole."

"Basshole?" he chuckled a little. "You look amazing, Blair."

She turned again before he could see just how delighted the comment made her, quickly shedding the dress and beginning her "maybe" collection. She flitted through the next few dresses, getting a little more bold each time she stepped out of the dressing room. Chuck seemed to be enjoying himself, and soon she was reliving her brief hours as the face of Eleanor Waldorf Designs, showing off the poses Serena had taught her until they were both laughing with pleasure.

She saved the very best for last, and finally poured herself into the sexy, strapless little number in a bright purple she would have never considered before. She had immediately noticed it, unable to ignore the fact that it was his colour of choice, and it was shamelessly and unapologetically sexy. The sweetheart neckline revealed more than she would normally allow, and the banded Empire waist showcased the smooth straight lines of her figure. She struggled with the zipper for a moment, frowning when she couldn't seem to fix it. She was going to feel even worse about herself if she was already growing out of her normal size. Embarrassed, she stood examining herself in the mirror, eyeing every imperfection critically and imagining the extra pounds that would soon pile on.

"Are you coming?" Chuck called to her.

"No," she pouted.

"I know you have something nice in there. Let me see it," he prodded her on.

"The zipper is stuck," she lamented sadly.

"Then come out and let me do it for you."

She didn't say anything at first, once more appraising the reflection in the mirror. What did it matter, really? She would soon be fat and ruined; why not let him see the beginnings of it now? It was his fault, wasn't it?

Chuck looked anything but disappointed when she stepped out of the fitting room. His mouth dropped a little, and she instantly felt better about herself as his expression changed. He slowly rose, taking her gently by the shoulders and turning her around so he could slide the zipper up. "Well?" she asked expectantly when he succeeded.

"You look…" he stopped, apparently unable to come up with any words. Her little smile disappeared, and she stared straight ahead at their joined reflection in the mirror. She saw him swallow hard, and the fun of before melted away into something painfully serious and real. "Amazing," he finally whispered, and she shivered a little as she remembered his confession in the back of the limo. _You were amazing up there,_ he had murmured. That moment had led them here, and for the first time since that little blue plus sign appeared, she didn't regret her choices. Tears suddenly stung her eyes, and she hated these new hormones that made her emotional at the most inconvenient times. Chuck said nothing, however, planting a feather-light kiss on her bare shoulder and allowing her the moment.

When she composed herself again, she slipped out of his grasp and returned to the fitting room to don her own clothes once more. As perfect as the dress was, she could only wear it for another few weeks. Considering how she was likely going to be spending those next few weeks, a skintight purple dress hardly seemed like a wise investment.

"Why don't you go look at headbands," Chuck suggested as she was getting dressed. "I'll go get drinks."

She agreed, grateful to have a few minutes to herself. All these rapid changes in her life were leaving her a little dizzy, and she needed some time to contemplate. She browsed through the headbands, trying to get excited about velvet and lace and bows. She picked out a wide satin headband with a veil overlay, then a thin ruffled satin piece with a delicate bow and halfheartedly made her purchases. It didn't bring the usual pleasure, so she wandered through the other various accessories as she waited for Chuck to return.

When he did, he was carrying a bottle of water and a small bag. "Hungry?" he asked her.

"A little," she shrugged.

"Let's go find somewhere to eat," he suggested, then led her out of Barney's.

Half an hour later, they were seated in a little café with warm drinks and croissants. He set the small bag on the table, waiting for her to pick it up. "What is that?" she asked suspiciously.

"Open it."

She scowled at him in distrust and picked up the Barney's bag to find a small box inside. "Chuck, you don't need to buy me gifts," she reprimanded. It was a sweet gesture and all, but he didn't need to buy her forgiveness or anything else for that matter. She was coming to terms with it, and deep down, she knew she was just as much at fault as he.

"You love gifts," he countered easily.

Well, when he was right, he was right. She lifted the lid from the small box, and once more, tears leapt to her eyes. She had expected some extravagant piece of jewellery as some some sort of misguided apology. Instead, she found an adorable little rattle in the form of a sheep. It was sterling silver, tiny and delicate and lovely. "Chuck," she breathed, surprised by the thoughtfulness of the gift. It was one thing to buy her the Erickson Beamon necklace; it didn't require much effort to pick out something she'd already placed on hold. He'd gone for the showiest piece on the list, and while it was sweet of him to get her anything, she knew it was also some attempt to signal he was better than Nate. This…she didn't even know what to think about this. "Thank you," she murmured softly. "It's beautiful."

"I'm sorry I ruined your Cotillion," he apologised suddenly. "I'm sorry I blackmailed you."

"I'm sorry I drove you to Monaco."

"Don't flatter yourself. Monaco is lovely in December."

She could tell he was joking, and she smiled a little into her decaf mocha. They had achieved something here today. Since they found out about the baby, there had been an edge of hostility through all their interactions, even when he was trying to comfort and take care of her. Neither of them completely trusted the other, and before today, everything had been so uncertain. With this new détente came the much-needed bond they previously perfected only when planning someone's destruction. Now they were allies, and whatever came next, she wasn't doing it alone.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: This has been the WORST day, so I'm avoiding responsibilities and writing instead! Thanks as always to everyone who has read and reviewed so far. It's always a treat to see reviews! Some of the dialogue in this chapter comes from 1x13, so whatever you remember does not belong to me! Let me know what you think, and thanks for reading. **

It felt like the calm before the storm. It was a feeling he knew well, growing up the child of Bart Bass. Especially the child of Bart Bass whose mother had died giving birth to him. Life in his world had been a little like walking through a minefield, until he was old enough to discover booze and women and the pleasure that combination brought.

He had a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach as he got dressed, eyed his reflection, fixed his hair a little, and sauntered downstairs for their new "family breakfast" ritual. He wasn't hungry, so he grabbed a glass of orange juice and downed it quickly while his father eyed him in disapproval. Serena was still irritated with him, so she insisted on walking to school while he and Eric took the limo. He genuinely liked the kid, so he tried to be his own version of pleasant, but his nerves were strumming and he was on edge. This was probably his last day as a normal teenager…or as normal as an Upper East Side prep school kid with a rich and absent father could be. Because today was the day that ended it all. After debating logistics for hours, they had set up a very specific plan for telling the parents. They had considered telling everyone separately, then decided there would be some strength in numbers. Once more, Blair turned to Serena for help, and the blond had immediately encouraged her mother to invite Eleanor for dinner now that they were back in the penthouse. Lily seemed a little bewildered by the request, but she agreed and called Eleanor, and they were all having dinner tonight.

If he was still alive and allowed to remain in the country after their confession, he would tell Nate. It wouldn't take long for the word to spread through Constance, then the entire UES. With the social scene of New York taking even more interest in the Bass name since Lily Van Der Woodsen joined the family, he had a feeling it might become even more scandalous.

As the limo slowly crept towards school, he desperately wished he had thought to bring a joint to calm his fraying nerves. Then he remembered he was going to be a _dad_ and suddenly smoking pot to get through a bad day hardly seemed like the best choice he could make. _Life as I know it is officially over_, he decided gloomily.

He was in a bad mood by the time they arrived, so he decided to hang back and smoke a cigarette before joining the other students in the courtyard. Of course, two puffs in, he heard a familiar laugh and quickly attempted to extinguish his light. Blair's smile instantly vanished when she saw what he was doing, and Serena tossed him an equally disapproving glare. "Don't stop on my account," Blair said sharply as she stalked past him.

"Seriously, Chuck?" Serena asked in disgust.

Ah yes, his stepsister and the mother of his child. The two women he would have to deal with for the rest of his life. With their peace accord still freshly minted, he groaned to himself and picked up his pace so he could catch Blair before the rest of the world saw them. "I'll stop," he promised as he grabbed her by the elbow.

"You can't do that around her," Serena warned him.

"I know, Sis," he rolled her eyes at her protectiveness of Blair. It made him hate her, just a little, because what right did _she_ have to tell him what he could and couldn't do? He should probably be glad someone was looking out for Blair right now, but he couldn't help resenting Serena for being that person when the position rightfully belonged to him.

"Calm down, S. I'm sure he won't do it again," Blair defended him, though she ended it with a pointed look so it really seemed more like a threat.

"Of course not," he managed pleasantly. "Allow a man to enjoy his last cigarette."

"Enjoy it anywhere but around me, Bass," Blair warned him, and then she and Serena were gone, heading towards school without him. It was only as she left that he took the time to survey her appearance. She was looking as immaculate as ever, her chocolate curls perfectly tamed beneath a shiny red headband. She was wearing red tights and a high waisted skirt and finished off the outfit with a ruffled white blouse. She was the perfect image of New York prep schools, and he didn't mind taking in the view. As though she sensed his gaze, she tossed him another glance, and they shared a small, secret smile before she disappeared into the throng of people.

So maybe today wasn't going to completely ruin his life.

He was on his way to first period when his phone vibrated in his pocket. It was little more than a passing annoyance these days, but he was hardly in a rush to get to class, so he extracted the phone and flipped it open.

Okay, so he was back to the worst day of his life.

So much for their carefully laid plans. He had a feeling he and Nate were going to be having that conversation sooner than intended. The remaining students in the hallway gasped and turned to look as he stood there, shocked at the image on his phone, and then he sent them all scattering with a single glare. He just stared at it for a moment, trying to figure out how someone had done this, trying to figure out why Gossip Girl was so intent on ruining all their lives.

And then he thought about Blair. The girls' wing was probably buzzing just as much as the boys' right now, everyone gasping and laughing and judging. There they were in Barney's yesterday, caught in their intimate moment. She was wearing that stunning purple dress that made it hard for him to breathe, and really, it was no wonder he hadn't noticed someone snap a quick cell phone picture. His hands were placed tenderly on her shoulders, and he vowed to find and destroy whoever had sent the tip. It was a private moment, meant for only the two of them. She was sad and scared and he was overwhelmed and feeling things he'd never felt before. They had needed each other, and someone used that against them.

**Spotted: Queen B playing nice with…C? The reigning Queen of Constance and the Devil of St. Jude's spent the afternoon playing dress up in Barney's, and we hear there were even gifts involved. Watch out, N, we hear purple is the new black, and Bass is the new Archibald.**

He abandoned any notions of going to class and headed towards Blair's first class, not entirely sure what he intended to do once he got there. His presence would probably just increase the gossip, but he couldn't just leave her to face this. He was the one who couldn't control himself at the sight of her in that dress, and he was the one who should have been thinking about privacy.

Unfortunately, someone else found him before he had a chance to find Blair.

"Where do you think you're going?" Nate demanded as he grabbed Chuck roughly. But Chuck was faster and pulled away, flinging Nate's hand from his arm.

"Going to find Blair," he answered as he started to stalk off again.

"Did you sleep with her? Huh?" Nate asked, grabbing him again and this time shoving him into the lockers.

"Calm down, Nathaniel," he ordered as he brushed himself off and straightened his jacket. The last thing he wanted to do was come to blows in the middle of the hallway with his best friend before he had a chance to do damage control. This was _not_ how everyone was going to find out, so he needed to remain levelheaded.

"Calm down?" Nate cried incredulously. "You want me to calm down? What the fuck is this, man? What were you doing with my girlfriend? Answer the question!"

"It's not what it looks like," he prefaced, then realised it was _exactly_ what it looked like, and he had no other excuse. "We're friends, Nathaniel," he tried to defend himself lamely. Anyone who looked at that picture would know they were more than just friends. Nothing about that picture said friends.

"Did you sleep with her?" Nate asked accusingly, grabbing him once more and pushing him up against the locker. He was holding him there with surprising force, making it a little hard for Chuck to breathe. "You son of a bitch! I ought to kill you!"

"Can we talk about this without your hands around my neck?"

"Did you get what you want like you do with all those other girls?"

That made him suddenly and irrationally angry, and any guilt he felt for screwing over his best friend quickly evaporated. He shoved Nate away from him, glowering at him in distaste. Maybe his friend had a point about the other girls he had used and tossed away, but Blair had been different. And _he _had been the one who cared about her. Nate didn't even try to get her back until he suspected she was seeing someone else. Nate had only cared when someone else started to move in on his girl. "Yes, Nathaniel, I took what Blair kept throwing at you and you kept throwing back!"

"Oh, so somehow you screwing Blair for sport is my fault?!"

He was about to argue, about to tell Nate it wasn't for sport, that he had been the only one there for Blair when she needed someone, but a small crowd was beginning to form. He saw Blair, wide-eyed and pale, and decided against every instinct he had. He wanted to punch him, wanted to remind him he was the one who hurt her in the first place. If Nate had just paid attention to her and gotten his mind off Serena for five minutes, Blair never would have been driven into his arms in the first place. But he forgot about her, he ignored her, he abandoned her when she needed him most, and he deserved a solid blow to the face. But he wasn't going to fight with Nate. Not here, anyway. Not in front of Blair and her friends and all their classmates. For once, he was going to set his impulses aside and remain calm. He momentarily made eye contact with Blair, then turned to face Nate. "We'll talk about this later," he said diplomatically.

"We'll talk about it now!"

"Nate, stop!" Blair cried.

"This is between me and him, Blair!"

"Look, I'm sorry," Chuck began to apologise. "I know how long you and I-"

He never got to finish his sentence. The next thing he was really aware of, he was sitting in the nurse's office with blood still dripping from his nose and something very cold placed over his face. He started to push it away, then recognised Blair's tear-stained face as she held the ice pack to his nose. "Thanks," he said gruffly. "Shouldn't you be in class, Waldorf?"

"They're all talking about what a slut I am. I think I'm fine where I am."

"Is it broken?" he asked, cringing as he brought his hand up to touch the incredibly painful skin.

"Probably," she frowned. "They called your dad. I think you and Nate are going to be suspended."

"He breaks my nose and _I _get suspended?"

"Someone saw you push him, so they're punishing you both."

"Perfect." He really needed another reason for Bart to hate him. It was really going to help the whole, "Hey Dad, I got Blair pregnant," announcement when he was also suspended for fighting with his best friend. This day could not get any better. He dabbed at the blood slowing to a trickle now and leaned his head back against the wall, allowing his eyes to close.

"I can't believe someone followed us," she whispered, and he heard the tremor in his voice. Maybe he should stop being a selfish asshole and think about how much his public fight with Nate was affecting her, but in the moment he was really in too much pain to think about much of anything.

"I'll hunt the bitch down and destroy her," he offered instead.

"Everyone knows," she breathed. "They all know I cheated on Nate, and soon they'll know everything."

That got his attention, and he forced his eyes back open and sat up straight again. "You broke up, Blair," he reminded her as he set aside the ice pack. "You didn't cheat on him."

"We'd been broken up for an hour."

"I think it was more like three."

She shot him a look, obviously not finding him amusing. "No one even cares that he cheated on me and lied about it for months. I'm the slut because I cheated on him."

"You did _not_ cheat on him," he said heatedly. "The two of you were broken up. And that was his fault, Blair."

"I'm the one who's pregnant."

That was really the crux of the matter, wasn't it? Nate cheated on her at a _wedding._ He had sex with her best friend when he knew full well what it would do to her. Then he kept it a secret for months and barely even blinked when her world fell apart. Her dad left her mom for another man, for God's sake, and even then he kept his mouth shut, smiling at the right times, occasionally looking mildly concerned, but never really getting it. She, on the other hand, tried her hardest to make it work. Part of it was her own denial, that damn movie she saw in her head, but part of it was sheer love and loyalty. She _wanted _Nathaniel Archibald to be the one, and she would forgive him over and over until finally it was too much. He wore her down, and when he did, when he rejected her so he could confess his feelings to _Serena,_ she came to him. He should have realised she wouldn't be on the pill, and she should have waited until she was, but that was it. That was all the fault she had in this scenario. If either of them should be the bad guy, it was him. He was the expert, he was the one who took her virginity, and he should have made sure something like this didn't happen.

But she would be the one to bear the brunt of the insults. Getting a girl pregnant was stupid and irresponsible, but they would call her a slut and a whore and treat her like an outcast. It didn't matter what he had done, or what Nate had done. Blair was having a baby and everyone was going to throw her to the wolves.

God, he hated this world.

"Maybe I should go to France," she murmured. "My dad has a room for me there."

"You can't just leave," he countered.

"I don't know if I can stay here."

"You're Blair Waldorf. Of course you can."

Her hand drifted to her stomach, but there was no joy in her expression as she touched the place where their baby was growing. She sighed heavily, then wiped at her cheeks to rid them of tears. "Maybe we shouldn't tell them tonight. Your father's already going to be angry, and my mother will probably know Nate and I aren't together anymore. She'll be furious."

"We have to tell them, Blair," he sighed, though he didn't like it anymore than she did. "They're going to be asking questions, and as much as I don't want to talk to Nathaniel right now, I have to tell him."

She grew quiet again, and he found himself thinking of Monaco, or Tokyo, or any other city far, far away from here. Of course he wouldn't really go…he didn't think so, anyway, but it sounded so tempting to just disappear again, get away from all of this. He glanced over again and noticed how pale and tired she looked, and he wondered if she'd been sick again this morning. He felt the sudden urge to say something kind, something encouraging, but what could he possibly say? Nate probably just broke his nose because he now hated him so much for the indiscretion, and though he wasn't worried about him laying a hand on Blair, the emotional fallout would probably be even worse. She'd been in love with Nate for most of her life and probably had diaries somewhere filled with plans and details of her future as Mrs. Nathaniel Archibald. This baby was ruining her life, and in all honesty, it would probably be better for everyone if they just got rid of it.

Thankfully, he was smart enough – and knew Blair well enough – that he knew he could never say that to her. There had been a tense few hours when he thought she might be considering it, but he had a feeling she would never actually do it. She could be a cold hard bitch when she wanted to be, but she was also sentimental. He saw the look on her face when they heard the heartbeat, and he saw the tears in her eyes when he gave her the rattle. She wanted this baby, no matter how inconvenient it might be.

"Are you sure you want to tell Nate alone?" she asked him, picking up the ice pack again and placing it over his nose. The pressure made him wince, but numbness sounded good right about now, so he let her hold it in place.

"He broke my nose," he said wryly. "I think it would be wise if you stay away for a while."

"You don't think he would-"

"I'll tell him," he cut her off, not willing to go down that path. He wasn't really the knight in shining armour type, but there was no way he was going to let her tell Nate after what his best friend had done today. Nate certainly didn't have it in him to physically hurt her, but he was obviously distraught and unreasonable, and it would be stupid to take any chances. "After we tell Eleanor and Bart."

"You better go have your nose checked out," she said quietly.

"And you should get back to class."

The look on her face expressed her distaste with that particular idea, and he couldn't blame her. Blair's reputation and status meant everything to her, and now her perfect image had been sullied with rumours of infidelity. "I'm not feeling so good. Maybe I should just go home, too," she tried to excuse herself.

He would have believed her, but she looked far too happy with that idea to really be feeling ill. "Blair. You're the Queen. Don't let them affect you. They're not worth that."

"I know," she sniffed.

"Blair Waldorf doesn't back down," he reminded her. "Now go on. I'll see you

tonight."

The rest of the day was truly awful. Blair tried to remember Chuck's words like a mantra as she trudged through each painful hour, but everyone was looking at her and whispering, and even little Jenny Humphrey turned up her nose at her. A girl from Brooklyn! She would have lost it without Serena, but her best friend had been by her side all day, acting entirely unphased by the Gossip Girl blast. They ate lunch on the Met steps as usual, despite the fact that the rest of the girls sat on the opposite end and glared at them throughout the meal.

By the time she finally made it home, her mother was worked up into a fury. Apparently Anne Archibald had called as soon as Nate was sent home, and Blair spent thirty minutes listening to her mother yell at her about letting Nate go. Despite the scandal surrounding his immediate family, the Vanderbilts were one of the only families Eleanor deemed worthy of a Waldorf woman, and the ring had practically been Blair's not too long ago. Blair just kept telling her mother she didn't want to talk about it until Eleanor had finally sent her away to get ready for dinner with the Van der Woodsen/Bass home.

She dressed in an Eleanor Waldorf original, but she didn't feel beautiful as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. She was nervous and terrified, and she soon found herself throwing up in the bathroom. It had nothing to do with her bulimia and nothing to do with pregnancy; this was plain old-fashioned nerves, and by the time she cleaned herself up again, she felt like even more of a wreck.

"What's wrong with you?" her mother asked as they headed to the car. "You look pale. Are you sick?"

"No, Mother," she sighed. "I'm fine."

"Stop acting so sullen, Dear," her mother chided. "Lily was kind enough to invite us to dinner, and I won't have you acting like such a petulant child."

They didn't speak on the way to her best friend's home, and she stared out the window and contemplated leaping from the car to put an end to all this misery. If her mom was upset before, she would be beyond livid after.

"B!" Serena greeted happily when they stepped off the elevator. Leave it to Serena to just bound around like everything was happy and beautiful when the whole world was going to shit.

"Hi S," she responded, trying to sound pleasant. She waited for her mother to walk away to go greet Bart and Lily before saying anything else. "Where's Chuck?" she asked quietly, noting his absence. Eric was with Bart and Lily, but Chuck was nowhere to be seen.

"Um…he's in his room."

"Why do I get the feeling you have something to tell me?"

"Chuck might be in trouble. Bart was not happy about the suspension."

"So he sent him to his room?" she asked sceptically.

"I'm afraid so," Serena nodded. "It's their new family act. I predict it will last another week or two before it inevitably falls apart, but Chuck was the first one to go down."

"Shocking," she sighed. "I guess I'll go get him."

"Would you like a chaperone?"

"I think we need a moment of privacy," she grimaced before slipping away to find Chuck. She knocked lightly on the door of what used to be the guest room, but she didn't wait for him to answer before pushing it open and walking in. To her surprise, Chuck was seated on his bed with books in front of him. Real, actual books. Textbooks, to be exact, and he appeared to be reading them. "Chuck Bass doing homework?" she asked. "Do my eyes deceive me?"

"A last resort, I assure you. I take it my dear sister informed you of my punishment?"

"Yes, and it's…bizarre," she frowned. "Since when does Bart punish? And sending you to your room?"

"It's a show for Lily. We had a long _talk_ about my behaviour. Apparently I'm only allowed out for family meals for the duration of my suspension," he informed her, bitterness dripping from his voice. Chuck had never been punished for anything in his life. His father quite frankly didn't care enough to punish him…or to even notice that he'd done anything wrong.

"I have a feeling they're going to be a little more upset after dinner," she tried to joke, but it just came out flat.

"Yeah, about that…how are you?" he asked, pushing the book aside to look up at her.

"Nate's mother called mine," she frowned. "My mother is already horrified that I would let this happen. She doesn't know about you, yet. I guess Nate didn't tell Anne that part."

"I do have access to the jet," he reminded her, probably only half-joking. "We could be in the air before they even realise we're missing."

"Right now, that seems like a viable option," she sighed.

A knock sounded on the door, and Eric began to call for Eric. Blair quickly scrambled off the bed before the younger boy stepped in, but he still looked a little unnerved to find her there. Of course he'd seen the blast today, too, but to his credit, he didn't comment. "Hi Blair," he greeted. "Dinner is ready."

"We'll be right down, Eric," Chuck promised, indicating that his new little brother should leave them for just a moment. "Are you going to be okay?" he asked her quietly as she smoothed out her dress.

"No," she answered honestly. "But we don't have a choice."

She wanted something from him, wanted a hug or a word of reassurance, but if he said anything kind or touched her right now, she knew she would fall apart. So she spun on her heel and headed back downstairs to join the adults, Chuck following close behind.

"This is such a lovely surprise," Eleanor gushed as she sat down at the table. Blair

waited for Chuck, then sat down next to him, thinking she might need a few kicks to encourage her or a grasp of her hand, if she was lucky. Serena wisely chose to sit on the other side of her for support, but Blair still felt entirely alone as the parents remained entirely oblivious to the real reason behind this little get-together.

"Bart and I were so pleased when Serena suggested this," Lily agreed with a warm smile, and it was all Blair could do to keep from rolling her eyes. Her mother and Lily had always been friends, as much as two UES women could be, but there was still that need to be so exceedingly cordial and polite. It was her and Serena in twenty years, and the thought made her turn up her nose. Come to think of it, the smell of the food did that as well, and she inadvertently grasped her stomach and hoped the little brat wouldn't make this harder by bringing on another round of nausea.

"You okay?" Serena whispered.

She forced herself to smile and nod, grabbing a roll from the centre of the table and ripping into it as the parents talked and everyone enjoyed the salads. During their planning the night before, she and Chuck had decided to wait until the main course, so at least everyone would be furious _after_ they had something in their stomachs. It all sounded well and good when they were planning, but she was a nervous wreck and they were probably going to notice. Besides that, she was absolutely famished, and she knew her mother would soon be giving her pointed glares over the number of calories and carbs in the roll.

Chuck, on the other hand, was the picture of calm. She knew he was sober, and his room hadn't smelled of pot, so he'd either done an excellent job covering up the stench of his drugs or he was just that good at feigning disinterest in the world around him. Eric attempted to entice him into a few conversations, and they pleasantly discussed a few mundane matters, but for the most part, he seemed completely oblivious_. Must be nice_, she thought bitterly, grabbing another roll and finding some sick satisfaction in the look her mother gave her. Serena kept glancing over at her in concern, but she just smiled at all the appropriate moments, pretending to follow along with the adult conversation.

When the main course arrived, Lily turned her attention to the children gathered around the table and began to inquire about school and the college search. "Blair, your mother has been telling me how excited you are about Yale."

Chuck suddenly coughed, and both she and Serena tossed him an evil glare. "Yes," she began carefully, "I have been quite excited about the prospect. Although I recently decided that perhaps I should look into some other schools."

"That's news to me," Eleanor lifted an eyebrow, the disapproval in her tone obvious to only her daughter. "Blair, Yale has always been your first choice. It's an excellent school and your father's alma mater."

"Teenagers," Lily smiled, trying to diffuse the obvious tension. "Always so full of surprises. Mine always leave me guessing."

"Blair?" Eleanor asked expectantly, completely ignoring Lily.

"Of course, it's an excellent school, Mother," she nodded agreeably. "It's just…" she looked over to Chuck for help, but the confidence of moments ago had rapidly vanished and he was now staring down at his feet. "It's just that I was thinking of something a little closer. Columbia, perhaps," she said mildly.

Eleanor looked like she might have a heart attack right there. "_Columbia_?"

"It's a good school, Mother," she defended herself weakly.

"Why on _earth_ would you want to go to Columbia?"

All eyes were on her, and she really wanted to crawl beneath the table and die. Just as soon as the thought crossed her mind, she felt Chuck's hand grasp her fingers beneath the table, and he gave them a tiny squeeze. It gave her strength, reminded her why she was doing this, and she took a deep breath to steady herself. "Actually, Mother, I have something to tell you. And you, too, Mr. Bass, Lily," she added.

"_We _have something to tell you," Chuck chimed in.

"Oh my God," Eleanor gasped. "Is _this _why you're no longer with Nate?"

"Mother, please, this is important."

"Blair, what is it, Dear?" Lily asked in obvious concern. All the adults looked completely bewildered, and Eric and Serena looked distinctly uncomfortable.

"I'm pregnant," she finally confessed before she could second-guess herself. "I'm….having a baby. Nate and I are no longer together because it's not his. It's Chuck's. We've decided to keep it." With that, she grabbed another roll and quickly stuck it in her mouth just to give herself something to do.

"Eric, Serena, you may be excused," Bart ordered coldly, staring openly at his son with an expression that clearly said there would be hell to pay. Eric quickly scrambled away, all-too-happy to escape, but Serena stayed put.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to stay," she responded boldly.

"Serena," Lily scolded. "This doesn't concern you."

"She's my-"

"Serena," Lily repeated, not to be ignored. Serena huffed in anger and shoved her plate aside before stalking away from the table, leaving Blair and Chuck utterly alone with three furious adults.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Many many thanks to everyone who has reviewed/alerted/read. You guys are great! This chapter was particularly hard to write as I'm still getting used to writing these characters, so any feedback on characterization thus far would be greatly appreciated. I hope the conversation with the parents won't disappoint! Thanks again for reading!**

There was a long, unbearable silence, and Bart, Lily, and her mother were all staring directly at Blair, like she might at any moment announce they were just kidding. She struggled not to squirm under their scrutiny, but Chuck's hand was still hodling hers, and it felt so awfully hot and constricting, holding her down, keeping her from escaping this nightmare of her own making. He remained still as well, gazing down at his plate as thought it was incredibly fascinating, and she nearly kicked him to get him to say something – anything – to cut the awful tension. She knew it wouldn't go over well, but she had refused to let herself think farther than that. Now she was in the eye of the storm, and suddenly being Queen B didn't seem to be helping her in the slightest. She'd always handled every situation with grace and aplomb, but this? This was a disaster.

"Well, obviously she can't keep it," Eleanor finally spoke up. "It's insane. They're only seventeen."

"Mother!" she protested.

"Silence, Blair," her mother demanded. "We are the adults, and we will figure this out. Clearly they won't be keeping it. The only options are an abortion or adoption."

"Now hang on just a moment," Chuck tried to interrupt, but the adults would hear none of it. Blair just sat in stunned horror as they began to discuss the options, leaving Chuck and Blair completely out of it. It was like the decision didn't affect them at all, and Blair really shouldn't be surprised, but still, she somehow was. Every detail of her life had been planned, if not by her than by her mother. It had always been Constance, Yale, Nate, grad school, and a life full of charity work and plastic smiles. That was the plan, and her mother was not going to allow for deviation. It was like Blair was the new line of spring clothes that had some tiny hitch, and now Eleanor was going to fix it exactly to her specifications.

"The best thing to do is just get rid of it," her mother concluded, as though it was the most simple, logical solution in the world.

"Mother!" she cried again in horror. Of course that was exactly what she expected of Eleanor Waldorf, but somehow, the words sounded shocking despite their predictability. It was just a given to Eleanor, just so easily accepted that they would wash their hands of it, pretend it never happened, get rid of the baby and go back to life as before. She would go back to Nate, and she and Chuck would forget about each other, forget about the baby that had, ever so briefly, been theirs. But Blair couldn't do that. As poorly timed as this baby was, there was something between her and Chuck, something she had never felt with Nate. Chuck was devious and she really, truly hated him sometimes, but then when she was with him, all that hate and negative energy seemed worth it. Sometimes that hatred morphed into passion, and that was something missing between her and Nate. Nate Archibald was her perfect match on paper, when she was looking at her perfect movie life, but when she was with Chuck, she got to quit acting and just start being herself. She was never one to throw away the script, but her lines didn't cover a baby.

"Blair, you obviously haven't thought this through," her mother chided.

"I have, extensively, and I've decided that I'm keeping it," she said as calmly as possible. She felt like she might lose it at any second and just start to sob right here at the table, beg someone to fix this and return her to the regularly scheduled Blair Waldorf program, but if she did, she lost any tenuous control she still had left. "Chuck and I have discussed it," she added and took a slow bite of her chicken.

"Chuck?" her mother asked incredulously, eyes nearly bulging out of her head. "You and _Chuck?_ I am so disappointed in you, Blair. You and Nathaniel-"

"Oh get over it, Mother," she sighed in exasperation. "Nate cheated on me quite some time ago. With Serena."

Lily gasped a little at that, obviously unaware of her daughter's indiscretion, but Blair hardly felt guilty for betraying the secret. Really, it was Serena's fault, and even if she had, technically, forgiven her best friend, Nate was not the stellar boyfriend her mother believed him to be.

"And then he lied about it," she added smugly.

"Blair!" her mother cried. "I don't know what has gotten into you! Apologise for your behaviour."

"She doesn't need to apologise," Chuck spoke up, surprising her with his sudden defense. "And Mrs. Waldorf, with all due respect, Blair and I have thought through all of our options and made our decision."

Well, he didn't say much, but what he did say upped the ante. His father dropped

his silverware and glared at him, his jaw clenching and his eyes flashing with anger. Lily looked horribly uncomfortable and uncertain, and Eleanor was just about ready to flip her lid. "Chuck," his father began, and Blair nearly began to tremble at the undercurrent of rage in his voice. Chuck remained nonplussed, however, so she had a feeling he was used to this. "You are seventeen years old. You will ruin everything, and clearly neither of you have thought about the consequences of your irrational and impulsive decisions."

"Mr. Bass," she interjected, not sure what followed that but not about to be browbeaten by the worst father in Upper East Side history. What did he know about this? Of course he didn't think they should keep the baby; he probably never even wanted his own son. How could he possibly understand what it meant to love your child, unconditionally, and to want that little life in your arms, in your house. "We-" she began again, but she was quickly cut off.

"Blair, don't," Chuck shook his head. "Father, I realise you don't approve, but it isn't your decision to make."

"It isn't yours, either!" Eleanor cried, clearly approaching hysterics. "Blair has a future to think about! There's Yale! And then grad school and Nate! You've obviously both had some type of aneurysm, but I'm not about to let you make this mistake!"

"It's not a mistake, Mother, it's a child!" Blair attempted to argue.

"Blair, I'm not sure what my son has told you to convince you that this is a good idea, but I assure you, he will not follow through on anything he's said."

Blair looked over to Chuck, expecting him to try to defend himself, but he moving his fork around his plate, apparently impervious to the abuse.

"Bart, Eleanor," Lily broke in in a vain attempt to broker some peace. "I understand we're all very upset, but we should hear them out," she suggested. "They've obviously at least given this some thought, and we should hear what they have to say."

"I will not hear them out!" Eleanor protested heatedly. "They're children! If Blair had thought about this at all she would realise what a mistake this is!"

"We were irresponsible, and I know that," Blair acknowledged as calmly as possible. "But we won't be told what to do. We've thought about this, and we've both decided this is what we want."

"You're not keeping this child, and that's final," Eleanor snapped.

"I agree with Eleanor," Bart nodded seriously. "Blair will have this taken care of immediately. We'll find someone very discreet, and I'll make sure that no one finds out about this. Privacy is the most important consideration with a matter as…delicate as this."

Blair honestly thought she might be sick at the way he dealt with this, like it was some kind of business matter. No wonder Chuck was so screwed up. She'd always known his home life was terrible, and she'd always known he was a product of his environment just like they all were, but she didn't really understand until now just how awful Bart Bass really was. There wasn't a shred of humanity in him, at least as far as she could see. He was cold and detached, like the life growing inside of her wasn't his family, wasn't his grandchild. "Excuse me," she said as the rage bubbled inside of her. "But this is my _child_, not a business deal. You can't just…erase it! I want to keep the baby, and yes, Mother, I have thought about my future and Yale, but Yale isn't the only school."

Who was she kidding? Of course Yale was the only school. Yale was the only place she had considered…ever. To be honest, she couldn't really even think about it. Having this baby meant giving up the one thing she'd been working towards since her father first gave her that Yale sweatshirt. But she knew she wanted her child, and that meant giving up Yale. She accepted the simple fact, but she just couldn't allow herself to think about it.

"I just don't even know what to say to you," Eleanor shook her head in disbelief. "This is unacceptable, Blair. Do you realise what this will do to your reputation? The scandal you will create? Have you even thought about how this will reflect on _me_?"

Yes, of course, she should be worrying about her mother at a time like this. She openly rolled her eyes and didn't even bother to grace her mother with a response.

"Blair?" Eleanor asked expectantly.

"There's nothing to worry about, Eleanor. No one will find out," Bart declared firmly, staring directly at Chuck, as though his son might suddenly take his side and talk Blair out of having the baby for their sakes. "We'll make the appointment immediately."

"Father, you can't force her to have an abortion."

"He most certainly can!" Eleanor cried. "We've given you children everything! We won't let it be squandered by this immature desire to play house!"

With that, Blair was done. She couldn't listen to them for another second, or she was going to be sick right here at the table. "Excuse me," she said as she rose. "I don't feel well." She stormed away from the table, not entirely sure where she was headed until she found herself in Chuck's room. She didn't know what to do, about any of this, and as soon as she was away from the fighting, her eyes started to fill with tears. She just wanted to hide from the world, so she laid down on his bed and breathed in the smell of him as she buried herself in the pillows and allowed herself to cry.

After ten minutes or so, she felt the bed shift as someone climbed in next to her. She knew it was Chuck, but she wasn't ready to face him yet, so she sniffled into the pillow. Another minuted passed, and he moved closer and placed his hand gently on her back. "Are you alright?" he asked in a low whisper.

She just shook her head and sniffled again before finally rolling over to face him.

"Blair, I need to tell you something," he told her.

"Okay," she nodded nervously.

"My dad was right down there. I probably won't follow through. I'm a selfish bastard. You know that better than anyone. He knows it, too. I'm not good at this. I'm not going to be the guy you want me to be. Even if I want to, I don't know that I can."

"Chuck," she whispered, not even sure what to say but suddenly just feeling so awful for him. It was a strange feeling, and she wasn't quite certain she'd really felt sympathy for another person before, but she felt it for him. Because he _was_ a bastard, and he _was_ selfish and scheming, but she wasn't sure he had any other choice. How could he be anything else with a father like Bart Bass? And if Bart kept telling him it was true, how would he ever believe anything different?

"I want another chance, Blair," he continued. "But I won't be any good at this, and I'm not going to pretend to be just to have you back. I'll fuck it all up, and I won't make you happy. You shouldn't have a baby thinking I'm going to change. I'll always be Chuck Bass," he pointed out wryly, but the usual triumph and the typical smugness was conspicuously absent from his tone. "You'd be risking everything. For me."

Her stomach dropped to her knees, and she felt more alone than ever. "So that's it?" she asked weakly. "You're just…out? Because he says that's who you are?"

"You know it's who I am," he answered quietly. "I'm not ever going to be Nathaniel."

"I never asked you to be. You told me you would be there, Chuck."

He sighed wearily and brought a hand to massage his furrowed brow. "I want to be," he rasped. "But you know my father was right. And if you're going to do this, you need to do it knowing that I might not be around."

"I don't believe that," she shook her head.

"Blair."

"I don't!" she insisted. "You told me you would do whatever it takes. You bought the rattle. You went to the doctor. Why did all of that just change?"

"Because as much as I hate the things they said to you, they made some good points."

"I can't believe this," she said, suddenly needing to be away from him. She climbed out of the bed and stalked over to the window, her hands drifting to her stomach as she stared at people and cars passing by in the night.

"Blair," he sighed again, rising from the bed and stepping over to join her. He reached out to touch her arm, but she angrily pulled away from him.

"Don't touch me," she hissed.

"Look, I'm sorry. I just don't want you to make this decision based on me. I'll probably just disappoint you."

"So what?" she asked shakily. "I'm just supposed to get rid of it now? After we decided to keep it? You're out? Just like that?"

He didn't say anything, and her stomach began to churn once more. This time she couldn't tell if it was the pregnancy or the old familiar urge to rid herself of the fat and calories she consumed at dinner, but either way, it didn't really matter. She fled to the bathroom and immediately hugged the toilet. She heard his footsteps right behind her, so in the middle of her heaving she turned to scream at him. "Stay away from me, Chuck!" Then she turned right back to the toilet and heaved again.

Once she'd lost everything she'd eaten, she leaned against the wall and allowed herself to cry. She thought this was what she wanted. She saw that tiny picture on the screen, the little inch that was her baby, and she just _wanted_ that little life. She wanted to watch it grow, wanted to hold it in her arms someday. And yes, a naïve part of her had believed the sweet words, believed the promises that he would be there.

When the tears dried up, she looked up to see him standing there in the doorframe, just watching her. "I told you to leave," she reminded him.

"You're in my room," he noted wryly. Was he physically unabel to resist smirking? She wanted to smack the expression right off his face.

"Just get out, Chuck."

"We need to talk."

"What's there to talk about? You lied. I'm not going to do this alone. So we'll just let them win. We'll get rid of our baby and pretend none of this ever happened. Then you never need to speak to me again."

"That's not what I want, Blair," he told her quietly, walking over to join her and sliding down the wall next to her.

"You can't do this to me," she told him seriously. "You can't tell me you'll be there and then just change your mind. My life is a disaster," she laughed humourlessly. "I need to know what's going to happen next."

"I meant what I said," he answered just as seriously, "but I don't want to ruin your life."

"Since when has Chuck Bass cared about ruining lives?" she challenged.

"I care about _you,"_ he answered heatedly, incensed by the implication.

"I can give up Yale. I can give up my reputation and being queen. I can give up everything if I know I'm not going to be alone," she informed him evenly.

"I don't know if I can promise you that."

His words were like a sucker punch, and she just needed to get away from him. She rose abruptly as the tears sprang to her eyes, and she could feel panic setting in as she fled his bedroom. Her breathing grew unsteady, and she didn't even know where she was going as she ran away from him. Before she escaped, however, a hand grabbed her arm. She knew immediately that it wasn't him, but she tried to get away anyway.

"B, wait!" her best friend called. "B, calm down. Come here," Serena urged, pulling her into her room.

"I can't do this, S," she cried weakly as Serena wrapped her in a hug. "I just…I need to get out of here. I can't be here right now."

"You can't leave like this," her best friend countered. "Come on. Just calm down. Talk to me."

"No," she shook her head, wiping at her eyes. She was so tired of crying, tired of having meltdown after meltdown, tired of not knowing what was going to happen. Serena helped her over to the bed and laid down next to her, running her fingers through her hair to calm her. Blair desperately tried to control herself, forcing herself to stop the tears, not allowing herself to cry yet again. Not over Chuck. Not over this. She wanted to be Blair Waldorf again, not this sobbing, pathetic wreck of a person. She'd always held her head high, but now she finds herself weeping at every turn. And despite any excuses she might have, she wasn't one to blame her weakness on the pregnancy. No. This was her life, and she needed to stop letting Chuck Bass rule it.

"B, tell me what's going on," Serena implored. "Did Chuck do something?"

"It's everything," she answered softly. "One minute he's going to be there for me, the next minute he says our parents are right about him."

"What do you think?"

"I think they're wrong," she answered simply. "I can't explain it, S, but there's more to him. There are times that he's really sweet. He…he bought me this little rattle for the baby, and it was so beautiful."

"That is really sweet," her best friend agreed. "And very…not Chuck."

"He's different," she murmured. "He's different with me."

"Then maybe you need to give him a break, B," Serena suggested. "You know that I am not Chuck's biggest fan, but you have to admit, this isn't something any guy would know how to deal with. Especially Chuck."

"When did my life get so out of control?" she asked in exasperation. "Everything was so perfectly planned."

"Well, get used to it. This is how it really works, B."

"Philosophy isn't your strong suit, Serena," she snapped. "And you're hardly a role model in life choices."

"Why are you always such a bitch when I'm just trying to help?"

"Because you can't help."

"You can let me try!"

"What are you going to do, S? I'm having a baby. My mother thinks I've lost my mind, Bart thinks it's a business deal, and Chuck is just a selfish bastard. He says he's going to be there, but what if he's not? What if he decides to bail? That's what happened, Serena," she told her miserably. "He told me I shouldn't make this decision thinking that he's going to be around, because his father's probably right about him."

"Well, maybe he's at least partially right," Serena shrugged.

"Again! Not helping!" she cried. "God, Serena, you give the worst pep talks!"

"I'm just telling you the truth, Blair!" her friend attempted to defend herself. "You shouldn't make this about Chuck. If he wants to be there, great, but B, there's never going to be a guarantee. Even the most perfect guy in the world might run away."

"Thanks, Serena. I think I'm going to go walk in front of a bus now," she retorted.

"I'm just saying, there's always a chance. So if you want this baby, then keep it, and trust that eventually Chuck will figure out what she wants."

Blair sighed and flipped over on her back to stare up at the ceiling. Her mind conjured the image from the small screen yesterday, the tiny black and white image of her impossibly small baby. She thought of the little rattle Chuck had given her, and she thought of holding the infant in her arms. She hoped it would get Chuck's lips and her curls, his eyes and her nose. "I just don't know if I can do this alone," she admitted.

"You won't, B," Serena assured her. "I'm going to be there. You know that. And your mom is going to come around. Decide what _you_ want, and let Chuck decide what he wants to do, too."

"Well, as much as I hate to admit it, you may make a good point," she conceded.

"See?" her best friend teased. "I do have some helpful words of wisdom from time to time."

"Don't get too confident, Serena. I'm sure it was a fluke."

"You get more and more pleasant by the day."

"Yes, I hear that happens with pregnancy."

Serena laughed that ridiculous laugh of her, and then her cell phone buzzed. Blair watch, half-disgusted as Serena brightened at Dan's name and then laughed aloud at whatever he had said. She was never going to figure out the attraction there, but Serena was over the moon with Cabbage Patch.

"You make me a little sick," she told her best friend when she set the phone down again.

"You sure that's not the pregnancy also?"

"Been there, done that," she sighed. "I guess I should go home."

"Maybe you should stay here tonight," Serena suggested. "Give you and your mom a chance to cool down."

"Yes, because Lily and Bart were _so_ pleased," she rolled her eyes. "Ugh, there's nowhere in New York I can go to escape this."

"I have an idea."

"No."

"But Beeeee!" Serena whined, dragging the syllable out and pouting like she used to when they were little girls.

"It's a school night, Serena, and I hardly think I need to show up late for school tomorrow. Gossip Girl probably has a hit out for me, just waiting to find out what's happening with Nate and Chuck."

"We won't miss school," her best friend promised.

"What's this brilliant idea of yours?" she asked sceptically.

"Well, I happened to overhear Bart telling my mom that he kept Chuck's suite in case things don't work out."

"God, he really is an asshole. What does your mom see in him?"

"Please, don't even get me started," Serena responded seriously. "But it means that Chuck is here and the suite is empty. What do you say? We can take a few movies and have a sleepover," she proposed. "We'll run by your house for clothes in the morning."

"I don't know, S," she sighed.

"Come on. You need a girl's night tonight of all nights. A night away from your mother and Chuck and everything."

"Fine," she agreed, against her better judgment. It really did sound nice to avoid her mother tonight. "But I don't have anything to sleep in."

"You can borrow mine. Just give me five minutes to pack a bag," Serena requested before hopping cheerfully out of bed.

"I'm going to get my purse and coat. Meet me downstairs."

Serena nodded, and she carefully crept out of the bedroom, hoping not to run into anyone on her way to retrieve her things. Thankfully, everyone seemed to have retreated to their own bedrooms, and the penthouse was mostly dark now. She slipped into her coat and picked up her purse, sending Dorota a quick text to tell her she was spending the night with Serena and to have her school clothes waiting first thing in the morning. Just as she was about to grab the elevator, she heard footsteps behind her and turned just in time to see Chuck enter the hallway. "Going home?" he asked softly.

"Your suite, actually. Serena and I are having a girl's night."

He nodded and gazed briefly down at the floor before meeting her eyes again. "I'll talk to Nathaniel tomorrow."

"Alright," she nodded, trying not to give anything away.

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry," he apologised. "About everything."

"I know," she nodded again. "We'll talk tomorrow. After you speak with Nate."

"Blair, I-"

"Tomorrow, Chuck. We'll talk again tomorrow."


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Thank you everyone for the reviews! They've been very helpful, and I always look forward to reading them! Just as a warning, there is some foul language in this chapter. If that kind of thing bothers you, just be aware that angry people = not so nice words! Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy!**

Chuck woke late the next day, one of the few perks that came along with being suspended from school. He found a note downstairs from Lily, informing him that a plate had been saved for him from breakfast, and he shook his head at the sweet but misguided gesture. Obviously she was going to play at this stepmother thing a little bit longer, even after last night's announcement. Unfortunately, she had forgotten that he knew Serena long before this romance with his father, and he knew she was hardly the Mother of the Year. He would be nice to her, mostly to infuriate Serena, but there would be no familial bonding. He may continue to torment Serena over their newfound relationship, and he had to admit, Eric seemed like a pretty good kid, but they were not a family, and he didn't plan on changing that anytime soon.

After a quick inspection of the plate she left for him, Chuck grabbed a glass and filled it with orange juice, deciding to pass on breakfast. He needed to go see his best friend, and he decided that was best done on an empty stomach. He started rehearsing the speech in his mind as he showered and put on clothes, trying to decide what wardrobe one was meant to don when announcing to his best friend that he had impregnated his long-time girlfriend. He usually knew these rules, though he most often chose to add his own special flare, but nothing seemed quite appropriate for this particular visit to the Archibald residence. After all, it was likely to be the _last _time he set foot inside their home.

Half an hour later, he greeted Arthur and instructed him to take them to the Archibald residence. Anne greeted him at the door with her usual forced smile, and like the perfect trophy wife that she was, she failed to mention the fact that Chuck had been at least partially the reason Nate was suspended from school. "I'll just go get Nate for you," she offered kindly.

A moment later, his (former) best friend appeared at the door, dressed in track pants and a navy t-shirt. "What are you doing here?" Nate growled, remaining firmly rooted at the door and making no move to let Chuck in. "I told you to stay away."

"We've been best friends for a long time, Nathaniel," he began, deciding to start with the sentimental in hopes of warming Nate up just a little.

From the look on Nate's face, the emotional appeal didn't work. "Yeah, well, we're not anymore. Now will you leave?"

"Look, I need to talk to you," he told him plainly.

"And I don't want to hear anything you have to say."

"Nathaniel."

"Tell me one thing, Chuck. Did you sleep with my girlfriend?"

There was really no way around that one. "Well techncially, she wasn't your girlfriend at the time."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Nate asked incredulously. "Blair and I have practically been together since grade school!"

"I know that," he nodded earnestly. And he did. Blair and Nate had basically been groomed to be together. It made perfect sense, a Waldorf and a Vanderbilt. Both old money, both established families. Blair had her sights trained on Nate from the very beginning, and even before they were dating, they were together.

"You've said enough, Chuck. Just leave, and stay the hell away from me."

"Nathaniel, please," he said, trying to remain calm instead of just throttling him until he had no choice but to listen. "I need to talk to you. Will you please just let me explain?"

"What's there to explain? You stole my girlfriend!"

"I didn't _steal_ anything! Would you please let me in?" he repeated once more.

"You have five minutes, and then I never want to see you again."

Well, it was a small victory, anyway. Nate finally stepped away from the door and stormed off towards his study, leaving Chuck to follow behind.

"Talk," Nate demanded, crossing his arms and leaning against a bookshelf. It obviously wasn't the time, but Chuck couldn't help smirking just a little. With that serious frown on his face and the brooding expression damn near perfect, Nate looked like he just walked out of a magazine ad. But that was his best friend for you. Even when he wasn't trying, he looked like a GQ model. "Well?" he asked expectantly.

Maybe he should have prepared a speech for this. He had briefly contemplated what to say, but nothing really seemed right. He impregnated his best friend's girlfriend; how exactly does one break that kind of news? "I'm sorry it had to happen this way," he finally began. "I was going to tell you."

"Yeah, sure," Nate scoffed.

"We were waiting for the right time."

"We?" his friend asked incredulously. "You two were planning this?"

"Look, Nathaniel, it's complicated. I did sleep with her," he confessed. "It was after the two of you broke up. She needed someone, and I was there. I'm sorry it hurts you, but I'm not sorry it happened," he said honestly.

"You son of bitch," Nate shook his head in disbelief. "You really don't get it, do you? You slept with my girlfriend and you think it doesn't matter. You think you can just do anything because you're Chuck Bass."

"Of course it matters," he shot back. "But we didn't do it to hurt you. I cared about her, okay? We were together until Cotillion. We knew it was too soon and we didn't want you to find out. I messed up, and we ended it. Then she got back together with you, and I haven't touched her since. I know I'm an asshole, but you weren't together."

"How long had we been broken up?" Nate challenged without even a second's hesitation.

"Nathaniel…" he began, really hoping his friend wouldn't push him there. Maybe his cause would be slightly more sympathetic if he had waited to be with Blair, but it wasn't as though either of them planned what happened after Victrola. He'd always been drawn to Blair, and any guy would admire that perfect body all wrapped up in her ruffles and bows, but he went to Victrola to escape his father, and instead found himself escaping in Blair Waldorf.

"I deserve to know," Nate countered. "How long after we broke up did you start screwing my girlfriend?"

_About twenty minutes, _he thought wryly. "The same night," he finally answered.

"She was a virgin!" Nate cried in disbelief, obviously in some anguish over this. Chuck had to hand it to him there; he really honestly didn't believe Nate ever cared that much about Blair. Nate had been preoccupied with other things, like soccer and weed, for quite some time. Since his sordid affair with Serena, he'd been flat out disinterested in his girlfriend. The anger was probably more about his wounded pride and sense of indignity, but still, he was getting pretty passionate about this. "You took her virginity the same night we broke up?" he accused.

"Yes, Nathaniel, I did," he confirmed, helpless to do anything else. "It was a terrible thing to do, and I'm sorry."

"She faked it," Nate responded, obviously still trying to wrap his mind around that little tidbit. It still made Chuck smirk just a little to imagine it, but there was really no humour in the situation at the moment, so he tried to keep his amusement to himself.

"She obviously didn't want to hurt you."

"What about yesterday, huh?" Nate demanded. "You claim you haven't touched her, but you were touching her then. And buying her gifts? What the hell, man? If she didn't want me, she should have just told me! And so should you!"

"It's more complicated than that," he responded, trying to keep his calm even as he felt his jaw clenching. After this, Nate really would hate him, and probably never speak to him again. After last night, Blair probably hated him, too. He'd promised her he would be there, and then his father reminded him who he was and he suddenly doubted the wisdom of making that kind of promise. His stomach churned would something he could only speculate was guilt, but he couldn't think about that right now. One ruined relationship at a time.

And Nate suddenly looked a little pale. "What are you talking about?"

"She's pregnant, Nathaniel. She found out last week. We found out Monday that she's about nine weeks along. That means that it's mine. She's due around August 11th."

Nate said nothing, so they stood there, awkwardly, until Chuck felt compelled to say more.

"We were going to tell you," he continued. "We told our parents last night, and once that was over, we were going to tell you. After the doctor's appointment on Monday she didn't want to go home. I took her to Barney's and someone took that picture."

Nate stared at him for a long, miserable moment, hate pouring out of his eyes. "Get out," he finally demanded, his tone hard and cold, nearly devoid of emotion.

"Nathaniel, wait. We didn't plan any of this. It just happened."

It was the worst excuse in history, and he was well aware of it, but there was nothing more he could say. For a very long time, Nate had been the only person in the world he cared about. Whether he meant to or not, he'd betrayed that.

The price might be worth it, if the reward was Blair. But he had a sneaking suspicion that he would soon find himself utterly, completely alone, and as usual, it would be entirely his fault. _And that is why I drink,_ he thought wryly.

"I said, get out," Nathaniel repeated.

Chuck wanted to remind him that he'd done the same thing, that he and Serena had betrayed Blair in much the same way, and they'd hidden it much longer than he and Blair. Granted, they probably would have kept it a secret forever if she hadn't gotten pregnant, but they were telling the truth now. He wasn't sure, but he thought was supposed to count for something.

"Nathaniel, I-"

"You really don't get it, Chuck," Nate shook his head, infuriated. "You stole my girlfriend. You stole her virginity. And now she's having your kid? Just get the fuck out," he demanded again.

"I didn't think you wanted her!" he finally defended himself, allowing a little of his own anger to get the best of him. "Be honest. If you could have Serena now, you would. But she's with Brooklyn, and you hated the thought of Blair being with someone else."

"Yes, and that someone was you! You son of a bitch! You acted like you had no idea! And what the hell was it with Carter Baizen? Did you set me up?" he asked angrily.

"Baizen's a joke," he retorted. "He was an easy scapegoat, and he deserved what he got. You're hardly his biggest fan. I didn't think you'd mind."

"You can't just use people to get whatever you want!" Nate cried. "You should have told me! I would have been pissed, but I would have gotten over it!"

"I didn't know what was going on," he admitted. "It was….different. With Blair."

"So you meant that."

"Meant what?"

"That you cared about her."

"Yes," he nodded seriously. The acknowledgment should run him through with terror, but after the shock and horror of finding out she was expecting his baby, the fact that he had feelings for her was hardly the life-shattering experience it was in November.

"Do you still care about her?" Nate asked quietly after a moment.

"Yes," he nodded again.

"Shit."

He actually chuckled a little at that, and they both gazed down at the floor to avoid each other's eyes. "Very articulate," he commented.

"So what? Is she going to keep it?"

"She wants to."

"I can't believe it. Chuck Bass is going to be a father."

"Well, I'm not so sure about that," he admitted. "I'm not sure it's a good idea."

"Are you kidding me? Chuck, come on."

"I'm not exactly father material, Nathaniel," he pointed out.

"You're worse than I thought."

"What does that mean?" he bristled at the insult.

"Look, I'm not going to lie and tell you I'm not a little relieved that I wasn't the one to knock her up. But she's….Blair," he said simply, as though that was all the explanation anyone needed. Come to think of it, he might actually be right. "I'm kind of surprised she hasn't threatened you with physical violence yet."

"Who says she hasn't?" he quipped.

Nate laughed for just a moment, but then he quickly sobered again. "I'm just saying, I think you of all people would want to make sure your child has two parents."

It was a rare moment when Nate said something profound, or even nearing intelligent, but how did the saying go? Even a blind pig finds an acorn every now and then? This was Nate's acorn. It was precisely the reaosn he'd given Blair, and it was precisely the reason his father's words had gotten to him so much last night.

"Look, whatever, I don't care what you do," Nate finally said, ending the emotional moment.

"Nathaniel," he sighed. He really thought they'd gotten through the worst of it and his best friend might actually give him a chance. He didn't even realise until they were joking with one another how much he hoped that would happen, despite the odds against it. Who else did he have? He was breaking Blair's heart, and he hated himself for it. He was ruining everything at the worst possible time for her, and he didn't know how to stop. Who was supposed to tell him what to do? This was exactly one of those moments when he did wish he had two parents, or at least one competent one. But he didn't. He had Bart Bass, and besides him, he had Nathaniel Archibald, his one and only friend, the only person he'd ever really needed in his life. He'd never gone to Nate for advice; he'd never _wanted _advice before. He dealt with things on his own, or he didn't deal with them at all. He drank away his worries, and before long the cold façade he put up just became who he was.

He couldn't drink this away. He tried, but it was still there. For the first time in seventeen years, he wanted someone to tell him what he was supposed to do and how he was supposed to do it. When his best friend inevitably kicked him out, he would be completely out of options.

"I'm sorry that I hurt you," he began with as much sensitivty as he could muster. "But I don't know what I'm supposed to do. You're my best friend, Nathaniel."

"I was your best friend. I'm not anymore. You slept with my girlfriend. You got her _pregnant._ I was supposed to marry her, Chuck!"

"You never wanted that!"

"How would you even know that? She was _my _girlfriend, and you should have fucking told me!"

"Like you told Blair after Serena? I kept your secret for you, Nathaniel. I acted like I had no idea for _months_ even though you were tearing her apart. You think it's different because Blair got pregnant? You're just mad that she gave it up for me when she held out on you for years."

"This is done. Get the fuck out of my house. I don't want to see you or Blair again, so pass that along for me, will you?"

"Nathaniel…"

"Just stay away from me. Don't talk to me, don't come near me, and make sure Blair does the same. I don't ever want to talk to either of you again."

There was no arguing with that. It was over, and there was nothing more he could do but walk away and let Nate hate him forever. He nodded and turned, walking himself to the door and stepping back out onto the street. Arthur was there waiting for him, so he slid into the limo and ordered him home.

It was just past noon when he returned to the penthouse, but he immediately went for the scotch. Responsibility be damned. If he was going to get through the next few hours without hurtling himself out the window, he was going to need the only friend he had left – alcohol.

He settled himself on the bed with his scotch and turned on the television. As he flipped through the channels, his eyes caught on the one photograph he kept in his room. It was a picture of his mother, the only picture he'd ever had of her. He'd seen a few others in his father's possession, but Bart would never allow him any except this one. They rarely ever talked about Evelyn, and Bart kept the pictures like she should be his and his alone, like Chuck should have nothing to do with it. And maybe he was right. He ahd killed her, after all. Evelyn Bass would still be here today if she hadn't insisted on having a child. He never knew any of the details of her death, but every year, without fail, his birthday came along and he hated every minute of the awful day. His mother died because of him. She gave her life bringing him into the world. _Big mistake, Mom, _he thought bitterly. _I wasn't worth it. Just ask Bart._

As he gazed at the picture of his mother, a terrible thought occurred to him. The last woman who bore a Bass child died without ever laying her eyes on her child or holding him in her arms. Now it was Blair's burden to carry a Bass baby. She was carrying _his_ baby, half of his genetic makeup, and he had killed his own mother. What if his child did the same to Blair? He'd never even thought about the possibility, but what if it was genetic? What if there was just something inherently wrong with his DNA, something he'd now passed on to the child Blair was carrying? He felt sick, and he was fairly certain it wasn't because he was drinking scotch at noon on an empty stomach. This was the kind of sick reserved for butterflies and the complications they caused. This was the kind of sick brought about by only Blair Waldorf. Because she was young, too young to be having a baby. And he knew she was bulimic, even if they'd never talked about it. (He was Chuck Bass, after all…what words of comfort could he possibly offer?) What if something terrible happened and he wasn't involved? If he decided he wanted out, there was no way Blair would let him see the baby, and if something happened to her, her mother would probably keep the baby so far out of his reach he'd never even be able to find it.

Throwing back another gulp of his scotch, he picked up his phone and composed a text to Blair. "Need to see u after school. – C." He still wasn't sure what he was going to say, but the fear of last night was soon dwindling under the fear that leaving his child would be worse than raising it. After all, Blair had two parents, both of whom were pretty screwed up. Eleanor all but forced her daughter into an eating disorder, criticising her and favouring her blonde, beautiful best friend over her own child, and Harold decided, during the most tumultuous time in his daughter's life, that he was going to move to France with his gay lover. They were, for all intents and purposes, terrible parents. But they were there. Eleanor might flit off to Paris too often, might leave Blair hanging during important moments, but at the end of the day, she had a relationship with her daughter, no matter how tenuous. Harold might have been completely and utterly selfish when he abandoned Blair and moved to an entirely different country before she could even come to terms with his choice, but he was also one of the most doting fathers Chuck could imagine. Blair always knew that her daddy would take care of her. Her parents invariably screwed her up, but she was _okay._

Then there was him. Motherless since birth, and basically fatherless as a result. There were a few times in his life when he thought perhaps his father loved him, but it was always a fleeting moment that ended far too soon. There were those few times, like when his father rode with him in the limo on his first day of school, squeezed his shoulder, and wished him luck. But then he hadn't been there at the end of the day, and Chuck was the only one left staring out the window as the teachers called the nanny to come get him. Or that one time his father had decided they should have a birthday party, like Nathaniel and the other UES kids did. He had told Chuck the plan, and he had been over the moon with excitement. He'd always been the one kid who didn't get a birthday party, and of course he couldn't help but spend the next two weeks bragging about the big party he was going to have that would put all the other parties to shame. And then Bart hadn't shown at all, hadn't even gotten him a gift. He yelled about the mess that night, insisting that the maids get rid of all the offending evidence of the earlier party that had only left Chuck disappointed. He'd never had a real parent, and he was an underage alcoholic who used his money for sex and drugs. Eleanor would not have been nearly so upset to learn that Blair was pregnant with Nate's child. It was Chuck Bass that was the horrible part of the whole ordeal, not the baby. And there was a reason for that.

Blair would be an amazing mom. He had no doubt, because Blair was nothing if not amazing. She might be overly protective, demanding, and controlling of her child, but Blair had never done anything half-hearted. She would channel that inner bitch into caring for her child and destroying anyone who got in the way. Her fierce tenacity would make her the kind of mother any kid would be lucky to have. But what damage would he do by not being there? Blair would be perfect, but a kid needed two parents.

He poured a little more scotch into his glass and briefly contemplated wandering downstairs to see if the cook had prepared anything for lunch. He didn't make it far, however, deciding that his scotch was enough for now. A moment later, a knock sounded on the door and he frowned. He didn't think anyone was home, figured Lily was out doing wedding things as she seemed to be doing almost every moment he saw her now. "Who is it?" he asked, his voice rough from the alcohol.

"It's Lily, Charles," his stepmom-to-be answered. "Can I come in?"

_Can't stop you,_ he thought wryly, but wisely chose not to say aloud. "Yes," he

agreed, not bothering to hide his bad habit. They were the ones forcing him to live here, so they couldn't expect him to just give up everything to play along with this ridiculous family charade.

"Isn't it a little early for that?" she asked him pointedly as she stepped in, immaculately dressed but looking rather harried.

"It's after noon, isn't it?"

Lily frowned. He just smirked. "Well, I won't tell you what you can and can't do," she conceded. "I know I'm not your mother. But we _are_ trying to be a family, Charles, and I would appreciate it if we could keep find a way to live under the same roof."

Again, he didn't say anything, just nodded and set his drink aside. Lily stood uncomfortably near the doorway, obviously wanting to come in and do the motherly thing, perhaps sit on the edge of the bed, but Chuck wasn't being particularly welcoming, so she remained in place.

"Well," she finally began again. "I just wanted to speak to you. About what happened last night."

"Did my father ask you to talk me into getting rid of it?"

"No, Charles, of course not," she answered, her frown deepening. "Your father…he just doesn't understand, Charles," she tried to justify. "But I wanted you to know that whatever you and Blair decide, I will support you. As a mother, I know that children are…the most incredible thing you can ever experience. Even if the circumstances aren't ideal, you just cherish every moment you have with them," she said sincerely.

He clenched his jaw, suddenly and desperately wanting to tell her everything. It was irrational and stupid, hell, it was downright emotional, and none of those words were supposed to describe Chuck Bass. But here she was, all lovely and earnest and trying her hardest to be supportive, and it was like the perfect opportunity to share the mixed-up thoughts running around in his mind. He knew he wouldn't do that, however. Baby or not, he was still Chuck Bass. But perhaps it wouldn't hurt to ask a question or two. "What if I mess it up?" he asked her quietly.

"Oh Charles," she smiled sadly. "No matter who you are or how old you are, you mess your children up."

"Ringing endorsement for parenthood, Lily."

"It's the truth," she shrugged.

"So maybe it's selfish to have them at all."

"No," she shook her head. "You give them everything, Charles. Everything that you can. And sometimes that's not enough," she acknowledged. "But you love them. That's what children need. Your father's still learning that."

_So don't be like him_, she seemed to be telling him. "Thank you, Lily," he told her, suddenly feeling much more at peace with what needed to be done. He _could_ try, and if it turned out not to be enough, if he turned out to be terrible at this, at least Blair and the kid would know that he tried. For _them_. Because he was fairly certain if Blair looked at him again like she looked at him last night, he would be forced to throw himself off the roof of a building. He was familiar with self-loathing, but the kind of hatred she could cause him to inflict on himself went beyond anything he'd known before. She made him feel guilty, when he'd never felt bad about the way he tossed and used girls. That look of disappointment on her face was like some undiscovered torture device, and he didn't want to endure it anymore.

"How about some lunch," Lily offered. "Have you eaten?"

"No," he shook his head. "Lunch sounds great."


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Thanks to everyone for the reviews! I really appreciate hearing your thoughts! My next chapter might take a while for a few reasons. First, it is the really miserable part of the semester where I'm overwhelmed by work, and second, I'm debating about what direction I want this to take next. I have the end planned, but getting there could still go a few directions! Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy!**

After a civil and mostly pleasant lunch with Lily, Chuck excused himself to stop by the florist. He'd been advising Nate for years on how to deal with Blair, especially when Nate had done something wrong (which was often), so he knew exactly what to do to earn (or buy) her forgiveness. He'd been with Nate many times when they bought bouquets of peonies as an apology. Blair particularly loved pink peonies, and Nate had probably paid hundreds now to get himself out of sticky situations. Blair could be a cold-hearted bitch, and she might make people suffer, but she could almost always be softened up with gifts.

Pink peonies wouldn't do today. Pink peonies were for minor slip-ups, those times when Nate forgot an important anniversary or allowed his eyes to wander another girl for too long. Chuck needed something a little more special, a little more exquisite. Nate always went for her favourite; he needed to do more. He needed to show her that he could be romantic, that he could be thoughtful. It took several florists to find exactly what he wanted, but he finally located a perfect bouquet of lavender peonies. A rare hybrid colour, they were stunning and dramatic, and knowing Blair, she would know precisely what the particular shade meant. They represented refinement, grace, and elegance – three perfect words to describe what he thought of Blair Waldorf. He would never tell her that, but she would know he didn't pick out just any flower, considering the rarity, and Blair always knew the little details like that. Nate had once brought her yellow roses on Valentine's Day (and as he explained later, it was because he bought them at the last minute and the red ones were gone), and Blair threw them back in his face for symbolizing adultery and deceit. Lavender was perfect to reassert his devotion, and so, armed with his flowers, he headed home.

Just as the elevator opened to the penthouse, his phone buzzed with a text. "On way now. – B." He hurried to his room to clean up the scotch, knowing that would just defeat the purpose of asking her over to apologise, and then laid down on the bed to watch television until she arrived.

He heard Serena's infectious giggling twenty minutes later, quickly followed by some snide remark from Blair. Well, that was his girl. Maybe not officially, but they were stuck together now, and really, it could be worse than Blair Waldorf, even if she did make it her mission to make his life a living hell.

He was waiting for her at the door to his bedroom, and he immediately offered her the flowers. "For you."

She tried to hide her delight, but her eyes always lit up a little when she was excited about something, and gifts _always_ excited Blair. "Thank you," she said diplomatically, her tone giving away nothing even as her lips turned slightly upwards. "They're lovely."

"You're welcome."

"So?"

"Excuse me?"

"So why did you summon me?" she asked expectantly, setting his flowers aside and cutting right to the chase. "Have you spoken with Nate?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

Any ghost of a smile immediately disappeared, and her face drained slightly of colour. "Oh," she said sadly. "That bad?"

"He had his moments," he answered cryptically, not wanting to burden her with the details. He had a feeling he didn't even need to deliver the message to stay away; Blair was a master of avoidance, and she had an interest in keeping Nate quiet about what he knew for as long as possible.

"What does that even mean?" she hugged, obviously not satisfied by his answer.

"It's done, Blair," he shook his head. "He knows, and I've handled it."

"What if he says something? Did you make sure-"

"He's not going to say anything," he cut her off.

"How do you know?"

"If he says anything I'll kill him myself, Blair," he assured her. "It's taken care of."

"Fine. Was that all?"

"Blair," he sighed. Of course he should have known she wasn't going to make this easy on him. It was Blair, for God's sake. She'd never made anything easy, especially where he was concerned. If this kid inherited both their personalities, there wouldn't be enough staff – or psychotropic medication – in the world that would make his life any easier. "We need to talk. About what I said last night."

"Look, I've thought about this, Chuck," she informed him. "Serena reminded me last night that my decision has nothing to do with you."

"That was kind of her. Remind me to thank her," he drawled sarcastically and made a mental note to plot his revenge against his dear sister later. If Blair didn't drive him crazy, Serena certainly would. Why couldn't he just be related to Eric? That kid was actually somewhat tolerable.

"She had a point. Even if you were perfect, and BTW, you aren't," she said pointedly, "there's a chance that you might bolt. I want this baby, Chuck," she informed him seriously. "It's up to you if you want to be there. But you will not continue to play games with me," she advised, and lesser people would tremble at her tone. This was why she was queen, right here, and not even a pregnancy could take that away from her. Those horrible trolls of hers might try to overthrow her when news of Baby Bass got out, but no one could ever replace Blair Waldorf as Queen Bee of Constance, no matter how hard they tried. You could buy the clothes; you couldn't put a price on the attitude. "You will make your decision, and then we will both stick by it. I'll give you two days."

His lips twitched a little at her ultimatum. God, she was so hot. "I need two seconds."

"What?" she asked in confusion.

"I'm in, Blair," he informed her seriously. "Last night was…a mistake. You know how my father can get to me."

She just stared at him in obvious surprise, clearly not expecting him to be prepared with an answer so soon. He had to give himself points for that one; he had regained the upper hand after her little power play, and he had completely disarmed her. A small victory, but he loved to win. "Excuse me?" she finally asked him.

"It was a mistake," he repeated. "I knew what I wanted and I allowed my father to raise doubts. I'm sorry," he said sincerely. "I want our child, too. And I want our child to have two parents."

"You're serious."

"I'm serious," he nodded, reaching for her hands. "I'm in. For good this time."

"What about your father?" she asked, obviously trying to restrain herself when he could practically see the huge weight he'd just lifted off her chest. Even if he'd quickly come to his senses, she had been terrified for at least twelve hours that she was going to be stuck, alone, with his baby.

"He doesn't matter."

"And my mother?"

"She'll make peace with it. You are giving her a beautiful grandchild."

"For your sake, I hope the baby takes after me," she smirked a little.

"Let's hope that for the baby's sake, as well."

"You're really going to do this?"

"Yes," he confirmed seriously. His heart palpitated in fear at the finality of it all, the commitment he was making, but Lily's words had gotten to him. He never thought himself the sentimental type, but even he could admit it was pretty incredible that Blair was carrying _his _kid. He'd seen that image on the screen, just as she had, and he wanted to be there for the rest of it, even if it – or she – killed him. "You might have to be patient with me," he added. "I don't know that I'll be good at any of this."

"Just….be here, Chuck," she implored. "That's all I need."

"I'll be there," he promised.

They stood awkwardly for a moment, neither sure exactly what they should do. They'd known each other their whole lives, but sleeping together had added a new wrinkle to their already complicated lives. He knew Blair, and he knew she carefully comptarmentalised everything in her life. He was Chuck, her scheming partner, her boyfriend's best friend. Now her boyfriend was gone, and they were partners in much, much more than a few plans of social destruction. It just brought up a brand new conversation they needed to have; what the hell did they do about them now? They were going to be stuck together for the rest of their lives, and once they had a child, there would hardly be time for meeting and dating other people. Obviously there was chemistry here, and he wanted another chance to show her that he could be exactly what she needed, even if he wasn't Nate Archibald. But the breakup with Nate was still fresh, and there were enough changes to adjust to. After a moment, however, she moved closer and wrapped her arms around him. He couldn't remember the last time anyone _hugged_ him (and having her pressed against him did all sorts of things she probably didn't want at the moment), but he allowed the hug and kissed the side of her head. _Get ready, Bass,_ he told himself. _She's going to be the death of you._

* * *

Blair could only feel relief as she and Chuck hugged. Despite any casual, resigned approach she had feigned, the idea of doing this alone was still completely and utterly terrifying. Being a parent at seventeen was horrifying enough on its own, but doing it alone….it was like sentencing herself to a lifetime of ridicule and loneliness. Just going to school had been downright awful today, and she already felt her crown slipping away from her. The breakup with Nate was public news, and everyone knew it was because of Chuck Bass. She should probably be defending herself, and him, when people hurled accusations and insults all day, but she was mad as hell, too, so she just tried to ignore the barbs. Serena had been at her side all day, and God bless her, the blonde had deferred all attacks with some pointed remark about hair or fashion. Still, she spent all day sulking and envisioning the nightmare that would be her life. If Chuck abandoned her, she would be the laughing stock of the school, and she would also be a single mom. For all Serena's talk about being bold and brave and doing what she wanted to do, she would probably run away to France and have the baby there if he left her to do this alone.

After a moment in Chuck's arms, she remembered herself and decided she probably shouldn't forgive him just that easily. "Well then," she began with feigned calm. "I guess we have a lot of things to discuss."

"We do?"

"Of course, Chuck," she sighed. "Babies are a lot of work. You think I'm just going to pop the thing out and that's the end of it?"

"Well, I had hoped. You mean there's more?" he teased her.

"Not the time for sarcasm, Bass, in case you were wondering."

"I wasn't, but thank you."

He looked strangely pleased with himself, and she just rolled her eyes in disgust. "Do you actually get off on arguing with me?"

"Oh, it takes much less than that," he assured her with a smirk. "For example-"

"You are disgusting, and if you ever talk like that around our child, it will be the last thing you ever say," she informed him with mock sweetness. Honestly, she liked that he could keep up with her, liked that even when she was in full bitch mode, he wasn't at all phased.

"Just you wait," he warned her, his eyebrow raising as he attempted to bait her. "When that baby turns out to be a boy, I'm going to teach him all of my ways. He'll be the luckiest kid in New York. In more ways than one."

"Lucky for me – and for mankind, it's going to be a girl. Clearly."

"Are you going to decide that by sheer force?"

"I'm a Waldorf," she retorted easily.

"The baby is a Bass."

"We'll see about that. Who said I'm giving my child _your_ last name? We aren't married," she reminded him. "I can choose whatever name I want. Maybe the baby will be a Waldorf."

"Please," he said, nonplussed, apparently not buying into her threat. And he shouldn't, really. Blair Waldorf was nothing if not traditional. She was far from puritanical (obviously), but she respected the way things were supposed to be done. Unlike people like Nate and Serena, who often thought their privilege a burden and the rules of the world too restrictive, she believed it had to be that way, that it was that way for a reason. The Upper East Side wouldn't be the Upper East Side if people could just say and do whatever they wanted. She believed in a strict order of things, she believed in rules that you didn't question, you just followed. She understood how it worked, and she conducted her life accordingly. Unless Chuck seriously refused to be a part of their child's life, there was little doubt that the baby would be a Bass.

"You don't think I'll do it?" she bluffed.

"I know you won't, Waldorf. It would be admitting defeat. And Blair Waldorf never admits defeat."

"As long as we're clear."

"And while we're being clear, I should point out that three generations of Bass babies have all been men."

"Just sprung out of the womb grown men?" she taunted. "That's quite a feat."

"And with a taste for scotch."

"Well, it's a good thing your child will be half-Waldorf. I'm sure my superior genes will be more powerful. Face it, Chuck, it's going to be a girl," she warned him. "I just hope you're prepared."

"Would you care to stake a wager on it?" he asked, obviously intrigued by the idea. Of course, he would make this into a game. Although, she was fairly sure she was bearing a girl (even if it was just from the strength of her own desire), so it could be fun…

"Betting on your own child, Bass? Low, even for you," she said anyway, feigning disinterest.

"You're going to have to try a little harder not to smile, Princess. I know you want to play."

"Do not."

"Even if there's jewellery involved?"

She acted disinterested the appropriate amount of time before pretending to come around, just a little. "What are your terms?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

"If it's a girl, I'll buy you something from the jeweller. Something you put on hold, I imagine."

"That's fair," she decided.

"What if I win?"

"You won't."

"Not going to work like that, Waldorf."

"Fine," she huffed. "If you win…"

"When I win," he corrected. "You will fulfill a certain fantasy of mine."

"Ew! Chuck!" she protested. "I'll be fat by then. Not to mention, it's completely disgusting."

"These are my terms, Blair," he answered evenly. "And for the record, you'll always be hot."

She just rolled her eyes, refusing to indulge him any longer.

"Don't pretend to be insulted, B. We both know you share some of my…enthusiasms," he smirked.

"Fine, it's a deal," she agreed. "Because you're going to lose. Have your credit card ready, Bass."

"I'll let you know precisely what props you'll be needing."

"No more," she demanded. "You're corrupting it in the womb. Now, we actually have things we need to discuss, like where the baby is going to live, where we're going to go to college, what-"

"Blair, you're nine weeks pregnant," he cut her off. "I think we have time for all these decisions."

"That only gives us 31 weeks to plan!"

"So?"

"So!" she cried in outrage. "You can hardly plan a decent party in 31 weeks! How are we supposed to plan a lifetime with our child in 31 weeks?!"

"Don't we figure it out as we go?"

She gave him a look that clearly said "NO." Blair Waldorf did not plan as she went. This baby had already thrown a huge kink in her five-year plan, and it was now time to begin anew. "The first thing we need to figure out is what we're going to do about school. I was thinking I could convince Queller to let me finish by correspondence," she wrinkled her nose at the thought. "The baby is due in August, so obviously I can't go back to school in the fall. Maybe by January."

"And me?"

"You'll continue," she said resolutely. "I'll take care of the baby during the day, and then you will come over and assist me." Chuck gave her a look, but she was not to be deterred. If he was going to do this with her, he was going to follow along with her plans. It was the only thing that would keep her sane, and she wanted to make sure that he was made well aware of all his obligations as a parent. She'd be damned if she let him be another Bart Bass. She would make sure that he was at every recital, every sporting event, every school play, and every single parent-teacher conference. He would be involved, and their child would know that their father was there.

"Do you think Queller will go for it?"

"Please," she rolled her eyes. "I'm a model student, Chuck." He gave her another look, but she silenced him with her eyes. "Don't think about whatever you're thinking about. I have a perfect academic record. I'm sure my parents can just donate something if she wants to protest."

"Alright," he nodded. "We'll have a nanny, of course. I can look into a few things, try to find the best."

"No," she shook her head, surprising him.

"What?"

"No," she repeated. "I don't want our child raised by nannies."

"Blair, children take a lot of time," he tried to reason. "We're still in high school."

"We can hire someone to watch the baby when we need help," she conceded. "But we were all raised by nannies. Dorota has more photographs of me than my mother does! Our child will be raised by its parents."

"Is this point up for negotiation?" he raised an eyebrow.

"No," she answered without even blinking. "Next?"

He laughed a little at that and gestured to the bed. "Maybe we should sit for a while to continue the Blair Waldorf Life Plan," he suggested.

"Don't mock me," she warned him. "I'm making sure that our child has only the

best."

"Oh, naturally," he nodded in amusement. "I just think that maybe we should sit. I have a feeling this may take a while."

He was still mocking her, but she ignored him and sat down on the bed. She was tired, after all. She was sick again this morning, but thankfully the nausea hadn't persisted throughout the day. Still, being pregnant was exhausting. She was starting to break out a little, which had taken extra time to cover up, she was cranky, and everything was starting to hurt a little. She desperately needed a nap at lunchtime, so sinking down into his incredible bed was a welcome relief.

"What else?" he asked her as they made themselves comfortable.

"College," she sighed. "Yale obviously won't be an option anymore."

"You could still do Yale, Blair," he countered. "If you negotiate on the nanny thing, we could both go to Yale," he suggested.

"Our baby will only be a year old when we start college, Chuck. It's a critical time, and I think we should both be present as much as possible," she said practically. "Plus, I'm not sure being a teenage mother really screams Yale Material."

"That's why you buy buildings."

"Be serious, Bass," she rolled her eyes.

"I am, Waldorf," he retorted.

She frowned at him, signalling her disappointment. She would not buy her way to into Yale, even if it was a good idea. Waldorfs did not need _help_ getting into an Ivy. Taking their infant to Connecticut hardly seemed like a wise idea, and if they were both at Yale, they'd be extraordinarily busy. The nanny would have to be full-time, and some hired help would spend more time with their son or daughter than they ever did. That simply wasn't going to be an option.

"Columbia, then," he suggested.

"Yes, that might work," she agreed. "I think we should both focus on New York schools. That way neither of us has to move or drive to visit."

He nodded, though she knew he had planned on attending either Yale or Princeton. She had a feeling giving up his universities of choice wasn't entirely a sacrifice; he barely wanted to go to college, anyway. In fact, she had a feeling he might decide not to attend college at all and go to work for his father instead. For him, college wasn't a necessity. There was already a place for him, and he would never have to do anything other than be a Bass in order to get the job.

"Next?" he asked.

"Next I take a nap," she sighed, tugging at one of the pillows to get it adjusted just how she wanted it. He chuckled a little, and she closed her eyes in her exhaustion.

"You want to nap here?" he asked in surprise.

"My house is too far away," she mumbled. "Now stop talking. I'm tired."

She felt him tug the blanket over her, and then she fell asleep. When she dreamed, she dreamed about chubby little babies. She dreamed of holding her baby in her arms for the first time, and it was a perfect little boy with Chuck's lips, dark tufts of curly hair, and the softest skin she'd ever seen. In her dreams, she wasn't completely terrible at the whole mother thing. She seemed to know how to rock it, how to hold it, how to support its head, and how to make it stop crying.

When she woke, it was with a panic. She didn't know how to do any of those things. "Ah, you're awake," Chuck noted as he breezed back into the room. "What's wrong?" he asked when he saw the look on her face.

"I have no clue what to do with a baby!" she cried.

"Good thing you have time to figure that out."

"Chuck! Take this seriously!" she reprimanded.

"I am taking it seriously," he defended himself. "Would you like me to buy you some books?" he offered.

"I don't need you to buy me books!" she snapped, shooting him a long glare. "I don't understand why you're being so calm. I've spent my life perfecting my resume for Yale. I don't know anything about babies! I'm an only child! So are you! We know nothing about babies!"

"Hence the books," he drawled, smirking that Chuck Bass smirk until she wanted to strangle him with her bare hands. God, pregnancy made her violent. But it was only fair that he bear the brunt of that violence, seeing as it was his fault and all.

"Books, Chuck, cannot teach you anything about parenthood," she informed him

coldly. "Did you learn to speak French from a book?"

"No, I learned to speak French from the hot-"

"If you value your life, you won't finish that sentence."

He immediately stopped, but he was still smirking, just a little. She mentally cursed him and briefly wondered if her child was destined to take after its father. She could just picture a beautiful little girl with a dirty mouth, or worse, an adorable little boy with his father's predilections. Maybe it wasn't too late to tell him she'd reconsidered his involvement.

"Blair, you don't have to know everything right now," he told her. "You rise to every challenge. This will be no different."

Well, maybe she could tolerate him after all. "But-" she began to protest.

"Blair, the baby is the size of a grape."

"It already has a head and arms and legs!"

"It's the size of a grape," he repeated.

"Fine. But do you _want_ to be unprepared?" she asked, her tone accusing when she really didn't even know why. "Do you even know how to hold a baby, Chuck? Or feed it? Or not kill it?"

"I promise you, I won't kill our baby," he vowed solemnly, though he still looked amused. "And by the time it's born, we will _both_ know how to hold it, feed it, take care of it…just calm down," he instructed.

She huffed, frustrated. He clearly didn't view this as the crisis situation she did, but nothing in her life had prepared her for this. Children were a vague, abstract idea. They were supposed to be little blond Arcihbald boys in her distant future, after she had time to grow a little more patient, perhaps a little more kind, a little more mellow. Of course, she knew none of those things would ever really happen, but she could dream, right? Either way, she was going to have time to prepare, to hold her friend's babies, to read books, to consult doctors. By the time her babies came along, she was supposed to have a nursery overflowing with toys, perfectly decorated, and closets full of clothes. Now she was going to bring her baby home to her _mother's _house, and her attention had been focused on preparing herself for Yale, not parenthood. "What are we going to do, Chuck?" she asked miserably. "How am I going to do this?"

"Lily came to talk to me. After I talked to Nate," he told her quietly.

"Lily did?" she asked in surprise. "Let me guess. She's taking Bart's side and thinks we should get rid of it."

"No, surprisingly," he shook his head. "She agreed with us. And she told me that children just need to be loved."

"What would she know?" she asked incredulously, horrified that Lily Van Der Woodsen would actually try to hold herself out as a paragon of parental advice. Serena and Eric had been fixtures in the Waldorf household since they were children. Lily was always taking off with the husband of the week, leaving her children to fend for themselves. There were maids and cooks and nannies, but Blair remembered far too many times that Serena called, asking if they could spend the night, just wanting to be under a roof with grown ups that weren't hired to be there. "Lily might pretend to be a good parent because she's marrying your father, but she abandoned her children everytime something better came along."

"Maybe," he conceded, "but she's trying. And they seem to like her anyway."

Blair shuddered at the thought of her own child growing up like Serena or Eric. Or Chuck. Or Nate. Or herself, really. Her parents loved her, but they were never really there, always too consumed with their own ordeals to really notice hers. Suddenly all the fears about nurseries and learning to feed and hold a baby paled in comparison to the much bigger fear that she was doomed to repeat her parents' sins, that they would turn out just like their respective parents and someday their child would repeat their mistakes. She imagined having a little girl who never felt good enough, who looked in the mirror and hated everything she saw, or having a little boy who escaped everything with drugs and alcohol and too many women. "We can never be like that, Chuck," she commanded, looking to him with fire in her eyes, forcing him to understand that she was serious, that there would be no defying her. "We will never be like our parents. You can't be like Bart," she warned him.

"I won't," he promised.

"And I can't be like Eleanor."

"You'll be better," he assured her. "We'll both be better than them, Blair."

"She probably thought that, too."

"I'll hold you to it," he offered easily.

"What makes you think you'll be able to stop it?" she challenged.

"Baby," he smirked, "I'm Chuck Bass."


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Sorry for the delay in getting this chapter out. Thanks for all the kind reviews. They always make my day. Hope you enjoy the chapter! Some of the dialogue in this chapter is from the show. Anything you recognise is not mine! **

For the next several weeks, the détente between Chuck and Blair continued. Nate ignored them both, and Gossip Girl was desperate for information on the throwdown. A number of rumours and theories cropped up, but Blair refused to acknowledge any of them and acted as though nothing at all had happened. They mostly ignored one another at school, and he didn't see much of her beyond school. She sent text messages, and he responded, and she came over a few times to spend time with Serena, but they didn't just…hang out. He was strangely disappointed by that, somehow thinking that things would get back to normal between them. Now a father-to-be, he spent more time alone than ever. Nate wouldn't speak to him, and he had this new family, but they mostly avoided him. His father had never spoken a word that he didn't have to, but he'd grown even more cold and silent since Chuck willfully defied him about the baby. Serena seemed to always be annoyed with him (which was probably a good thing), and Eric seemed curious and maybe a little interested in having a brother, but Bart had probably scared him off. A few times, he tried to invite Eric to join him for various activities, but Bart could quickly kill that idea with a single glance, and it was obvious the younger boy was terrified of his future stepfather. Really, Chuck couldn't blame him.

At thirteen weeks, Blair surprised him by announcing that she had another appointment and expected him to be there. They went through the same protocol as before, and when he met her in the waiting room, it was the first time they'd really been alone in three weeks. "Waldorf," he greeted her as he sat down next to her. She had carried along a Vogue, and it made him smirk, just a little. Of course Blair wouldn't be reading the mommy magazines in the lobby. "You're looking well," he informed her. And it was true. She looked amazing. In particular, he noticed that her blouse had grown a little tighter across the front, and he silently thanked pregnancy hormones for that lucky side effect.

"I look fat," she snapped, not even looking up from her magazine. "Any day now someone's going to figure it out."

He glanced at her stomach, but he didn't notice anything different. "Only if they're looking at-"

"Bass," she cut him off, turning to him with a glare.

"You look hot."

"You are disgusting."

It was practically affection at this point, so he just chuckled and took the magazine from her hands. "How are you feeling?"

"You can't be serious."

"Why?"

"Chuck, I invited you because you're the father. You don't have to be…"

"Kind? Supportive? Friendly?"

"Pick one," she retorted smartly.

"Are you still getting sick?" he continued anyway.

She looked strangely annoyed by the question, but surprisingly, she didn't protest this time. "Not really."

"That's good."

"Yes," she agreed quietly.

Before he could ask anything else, her name was called and they were brought back to see the doctor. It was a normal, routine appointment, and the doctor told them they would do another ultrasound at twenty weeks and potentially find out the sex of the baby. Nothing eventful occurred, everything seemed to be right on schedule, and they were soon sent home.

"My mother wants you to come to dinner this week," she informed him in his limo.

Having dinner with Eleanor sounded like the worst thing that could happen to him. "Why?" he asked suspiciously.

"Why?" she repeated incredulously. "You're the father of her grandchild. Why do you think?"

"Fine," he agreed.

"She'll be on the warpath."

"Sounds fun."

"Can you be pleasant?" she asked sceptically.

"For you, anything," he answered, though he was mostly being sarcastic. She just rolled her eyes and rested her head back against the seat. "Coming over?" he asked expectantly when they pulled up to his building. He silently hoped she would, just so he could be around her a little longer.

"I don't want to go home," she sighed.

"Then come up."

She nodded and climbed out of the limo, heading up to the penthouse without waiting for him. By the time he arrived inside, she was nowhere to be seen. He assumed she had slipped away to Serena's room, so he went to his own and picked out a movie to watch alone. He considered drinking, but decided he probably shouldn't risk it with Blair in the house. She'd be irate if she caught him, and he'd been trying to cut back anyway. He knew it was hopeless to try to stop, but it would be better for everyone if he wasn't a complete alcoholic when the baby came along.

He had just put a DVD into the player when he spotted one he'd forgotten about. In November, during their brief affair, she casually mentioned that she'd never seen _Two for the Road_. He'd been shocked, of course, thinking she'd probably seen every Audrey film ever made. He promptly when out and bought the thing, then decided it was ridiculous and stowed it away somewhere. Their fling ended before he got around to telling her, but here it say on his shelves. He briefly contemplated, then decided to take a risk and invite her to watch it with him.

"Sis," he called as he knocked on Serena's door, knowing how much she loathed the term. She didn't answer, so he pushed the door open and found the room empty. He frowned, confused, thinking that Blair was here with her. He was about to return to his own room, and then he heard a strange sound from the bathroom. Even more confused, he stepped closer to the bathroom and realised it was retching.

Without bothering to knock, he pushed the door open and found Blair alone in the bathroom, crouched in front of the toilet. "Blair?" he asked in concern, assuming the nausea had come back.

She looked up in alarm and quickly wiped at her face. "What are you doing in here?" she asked accusingly.

"I was looking for you," he answered. "Where's Serena?"

"Not here. She must be with Dan. Now get out," she demanded.

He was about to obey – a pregnant Blair was not one to be crossed, after all – but then he remembered that she hadn't been sick much lately. "I thought you said the morning sickness was gone."

"Obviously not," she spat.

It took him about thirty seconds to figure out what really happened. She'd been quiet in the limo, she didn't want to go home, Serena wasn't here, and the bathroom was at her disposal. "It'll be a little pathetic to still be doing that when you're a mother, don't you think?" It was the worst way to go about confronting her, but he was Chuck Bass. He didn't do consolation. Especially not when she was being reckless.

"Get out, Chuck," she demanded again.

"You realise it's stupid," he continued, ignoring her altogether. "Unnecessary. Dangerous. Should I keep going?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she feigned ignorance as she stood and began to clean herself up. "It's morning sickness."

He didn't know why, but it made him really angry that she would just lie to him so easily. Especially when it came to her well-being, which inevitably affected their baby's well-being. He hadn't expected himself to care so much; after all, if something happened to the kid, wouldn't his responsibility be relieved? Shouldn't he want that? Maybe he wouldn't willingly wish harm on the thing, but if it happened, would it really be that bad? _Yes_, he immediately thought, answering his own question. He would think about that later; right now, he needed to handle this. "That's my kid, Blair," he reminded her. "You can't just do whatever you want anymore."

"What? Are you saying you actually care?" she challenged.

_More than you know,_ he thought wryly. "I don't know how many times we have to have this conversation," he said instead. "Deal with this, Blair. Or I'm calling a therapist." Not trusting himself to say more, he turned and started to leave the room, then remembered the movie. "Arthur can drive you home," he offered. "Or I have _Two for the Road._ You can come watch it with me."

Ten minutes later, he had loaded the DVD and was laying on his bed, about to start the movie. He heard the door creak open, and Blair appeared in his room. She just stood there for a moment, and then she climbed into the bed with him. He smiled a little to himself and pressed play.

By the time the movie had ended, Blair had moved a little closer, and his hand had found hers. He casually ran his thumb over the back of her hand, and it was….nice. He never thought holding hands would really be his thing, but he found himself enjoying the quiet with her, enjoying that they were together without fighting or discussing the future or even having to talk about anything. He thought she might be drifting off to sleep, but as the movie ended, he heard her sniffle. "Are you crying?" he asked in surprise.

"No! Of course not."

But she sniffled again, and he knew she was. "Blair, they stay together," he pointed out.

"I know! But it's…sad."

"You love _Roman Holiday_, and Ann goes back to being a princess."

"That's different," she protested. "They have their romantic time and then it ends, and she can remember it like that forever," she said wistfully. "It's over before all the fighting and the sadness."

He didn't know what to say to that, and he realised the movie may not have been a good choice in her more vulnerable state. But he couldn't help liking it, just a little. After all, Blair was a bitch and he was a bastard, just like Joanna and Mark. "Charles?" a voice suddenly called.

Blair instantly sat up and let go of his hand. "Just a moment, Lily," he requested, giving Blair a moment to climb out of the bed.

"Your father and I just wanted you to join us to sample food for the wedding. Blair, too," she added. "Serena and Daniel are here now."

"We'll be there in just a moment," he agreed, waiting for Lily to leave before turning to Blair. "Hungry?" he asked her.

"Starving," she admitted.

It felt strangely domestic to bring Blair along, but she and Serena were practically sisters, so it made sense. Of course, she gave Humphrey a look of disgust before sitting down, and it pleased him to no end. They tasted a few of the caterers creations and shared comments, and he enjoyed watching Humphrey squirm as he attempted to fit in while eating food he couldn't even pronounce. When one of the staff came in presenting a box to Serena, he watched in boredom as she fluffed up a little and batted her eyelashes at Dan. "Does it have to be refrigerated?" she asked.

"No, it's not from me," Dan responded. "I don't know."

"Oh, don't put your dirty package on the table," Lily spoke up as Serena placed the box on the coffee table.

At that, Chuck couldn't resist, despite the charming façade he'd tried to present for Lily the majority of the time. "If I had a dime for every time I heard that," he grinned, turning to Eric as the younger boy laughed.

"That's enough, Chuck," Bart said sternly.

Instantly, Chuck deflated. Why could Bart so easily ruin his fun? And make him feel so terrible? Just this morning, his father had casually announced that he would be best man at the wedding. It was strange, after several weeks without speaking to each other, but he'd momentarily been pleased, thinking maybe his father might be coming around. Now he knew, it was only because of Lily that his father asked him. While it was nice for her to take an interest, he knew she could only get so far when it came to Bart Bass.

He turned quiet and watched Serena open the package, but after a moment, he felt tiny fingers grasp his and squeeze before she returned her hand to her lap.

Blair's comfort lasted only a moment, however. "Porn and handcuffs?" Serena asked incredulously. "Really?" she asked, immediately looking to him.

"Oh my," Lily sighed.

"Wow," Humphrey joined in.

"This is low, Chuck, even for you," she fumed as she stood up angrily.

"What? I didn't send this," he defended himself, turning to Blair to declare his innocence. She just shrugged, and he wasn't sure if that was her believing him or just not caring.

"If you'll excuse me," Humphrey cleared his throat and rose to follow his girlfriend. It reminded Chuck exactly why he loathed the other boy; he had no guts. Serena was angry, so he followed along like a lost little puppy.

"Oh, could you…" Lily pointed to the box, obviously wanting the offending thing disposed of.

Dan stumbled his way through an apology before offering to throw out the package, and their pleasant little tasting came to an abrupt, unpleasant end. Blair excused herself, and Lily reminded her to take care of herself before she slipped out the door.

Later that night, he sat in his room actually taking a stab at his homework when he heard familiar footsteps. He knew those footsteps, and he knew he was in trouble. "Father," he greeted.

Bart closed the door behind him and just stood there looking threatening. "You almost ruined things between me and Lily once before," his father began stonily. "I'm not going to let that happen again."

"What are you talking about?" he asked in earnest confusion.

"I've allowed you to keep up this ridiculous charade with Blair," his father continued. "Lily tried to convince me that it would make you more…responsible." The way he said the word, it was obvious he didn't believe such a word could apply to his son. "Obviously that's not the case. That vulgur stunt you pulled at dinner…"

"I didn't send that package to Serena, and quite frankly, her violated Virgin Mary act is getting pretty old," he responded bitterly.

"I thought making you my best man would help."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Inspire you to value my happiness above your own childish agenda. Things seem to be working out for you at that Club Victrola. I figured with a baby on the way, you might like me to invest more in the place, so you could have more control. In exchange for good behaviour of course."

"You're bribing me," he realised.

"So we have a deal then."

Chuck was too insulted to say anything, and somehow, his father still managed to hurt him after all this time. He should be immune to it by now, but he was trying. He had been accommodating, and other than his mild ribbing of Serena and a few efforts to make her life miserable, he hadn't caused problems even with all the people suddenly around. He was making an effort with Blair, he was drinking less, he was doing homework! Then, at the first sign of trouble, his father immediately suspected him. As though the only thing on his mind was some kind of elaborate and twisted plot against Serena, and not the child that he was going to be responsible for in some 28 weeks or so.

His father disappeared before he could respond, and Chuck promptly abandoned the homework in favour of his scotch. Screw reforming himself, at least for tonight. He still had seven months to prepare for being a father. Sobriety could wait until tomorrow.

* * *

Blair honestly didn't know what to think about Serena's mystery package, but for some reason, she believed Chuck. Normally, he made no efforts to conceal his diabolical plots. In fact, he usually took pride in his acts of cleverness, particularly when they were so utterly successful. When Serena stormed out in disgust, he didn't seem to take any pride in her little outburst, and before, when his father had scolded him in front of everyone, he seemed legitimately upset. Maybe she shouldn't be all that surprised, either. She knew he didn't just happen to have that movie on hand; she remembered mentioning that she'd never seen it. Honestly, he'd been nothing but sweet with her since they decided to keep the baby. He had his moments of awfulness, but he seemed to be cleaning himself up a little. She caught him a few times taking home books and doing other things that indicated he was taking school seriously, and there wasn't even a hint of alcohol in his room. Then he just held her hand through the movie, and though it disturbed her just a little to see him act so…un-Chuck, she had to admit, she kind of liked this new side to him.

For the most part, she ignored him at school. Gossip Girl had been abuzz for a week trying to find out what was behind the candid picture and her sudden breakup with Nate, and the last thing they needed was to fuel the fire. The news would come out soon. Her time was running out, and every day, her stomach became just a little more noticeable. The bump was definitely starting to emerge now, and that had spurred her little act of purging at Serena's. She hadn't meant for it to happen, but she expected her best friend to be home. She wanted to talk, wanted to tell her how scared she was, wanted to tell her she'd gained weight and was feeling miserable about it. She knew it was supposed to happen, knew it _had_ to happen for the baby to grow and be healthy, but she'd spent most of her life carefully watching every calorie that went into her body. It wasn't easy to gain weight and just accept it, and her mother's lingering eyes weren't helping. So when Serena wasn't there, it just happened. She knew it was wrong, knew it was dangerous to the baby, but for a moment, the urge had been greater than her will-power. So she caved, and of course she got caught.

It couldn't happen again. She knew she couldn't do this anymore, not with the baby growing inside of her. But any day now, the baby bump she was concealing would be too much to keep hidden, and everyone would know. She already caught Nate staring at her once, and that had been terrible in and of itself. He hadn't even acknowledged her at school, and it was terrible, painful, miserable. But when she caught him looking at her stomach, the guilt was that much worse. He knew now that she'd faked her virginity, and the disgust in his eyes was apparent. It was the same disgust that she would soon find in all her classmates' eyes, and with the hormones coursing through her body, she spent a great deal of her time crying in her room.

Several days after her doctor's appointment, her mom gave her a dress to wear to dinner on Friday evening. She had arranged for Lily and Bart to come along with Chuck for the evening, so of course she expected her daughter to dress well. It would be the first time they all talked since she and Chuck broke the news, and it wasn't going to be pleasant. Her mother hadn't at all warmed up to the idea of being her grandmother, but the hysterics had toned down a bit, and they had now approached something like a cold war. With Bart and Lily coming, she had a feeling the weapons would be back.

It was a beautiful dress, though, so Blair accepted the gift and took it to her room to try on. She struggled with the zipper, then called for Dortoa to help her. "I sorry, Miss Blair," the maid said after a moment. "Zipper is stuck."

"Try it again," she snapped as she looked in the mirror in horror. It was hopeless, and she knew it. The fabric was stretched too tightly across her growing breasts, and worse, the tiny bump was beginning to show.

"Miss Blair," Dorota began.

"Take it off," she demanded, unable to look at herself anymore.

"We fix it, Miss Blair," Dorota assured her.

"Take it off!" she screamed as she began to cry. Dorota quickly obeyed, undoing the zipper and allowing Blair to step out of it. Wearing just her slip, she threw herself into bed and began to sob all over again. It was her favourite pastime these days, and Dorota knew she needed to be left alone. She cried for a few minutes before scurrying into the bathroom, immediately sticking her finger down her throat to force herself to throw up.

At the last second, she pulled her finger out just before she gagged. _I can't do this,_ she told herself. She hated the extra weight, hated that she would soon be fat and undesirable, but she chose this. She knew what she was doing and she picked the baby. It would destroy her if she hurt the baby out of her own desire to be thin, and it was a losing battle anyway. No matter how much she purged, the baby _had _to grow. She was going to gain weight, or she was going to lose her baby. Maybe that therapist wasn't a bad idea after all.

Instead of calling first, she decided to head straight to the penthouse to talk to him. She might lose her nerve if she called. So she ignored her mother and slipped out the door, grabbing a cab and barking out the address for the Van der Bass penthouse.

When the elevator arrived, there was no one waiting in the penthouse. She made her way to Chuck's room, but the door was cracked open and the lights were off. She frowned, surprised, as she wandered inside. Since Nate no longer talked to him, Chuck seemed to be alone most of the time, but there was no trace of him here. In fact, upon closer inspection, she noticed his computer was gone, as were his clothes. Confused, she headed to Serena's room instead. "S?" she called.

"B! I didn't know you were coming," Serena answered in surprise and swung the door open.

"I was just looking for Chuck. Do you know where he is?"

"Probably his den of iniquity," the blonde answered bitterly.

"If you're talking about his room, I checked there."

"B, he doesn't live here anymore. Didn't he tell you?"

"What?" she cried. "Since when?"

"Since he sent me that case of champagne! At school! Bastard," she shook her head. "I'm sorry, B, but the future father of your child is a complete asshole."

"Wait, you think he did that?" she nearly laughed at the idea. Of course, Chuck would normally take delight in such a scheme, and humiliating Serena seemed to be high on his list of priorities now that they were going to be siblings, but there was no way he sent the first package, so why would he have sent the second? Quite frankly, Chuck would do better than a case of champagne delivered to Constance.

"I _know_ he did it, B. Even his father knew he would stoop so low."

"Of course his father believed the worst," she rolled her eyes, barely able to believe how stupid her best friend could be at times. "So where is he now?"

"Probably at his suite. I don't care where he is, as long as he isn't here."

"You got him kicked out!"

"B, he keeps sending me these disgusting packages! Yesterday he actually gave Eric an envelope with _cocaine_. He gave it to my _little brother._ I can't believe you're defending him!"

"Because he didn't do it! Have you ever known Chuck to play innocent?"

"He's _trying _to win over my family. Of course he's playing innocent."

"That's right, S. Because the world revolves around you," she rolled her eyes. "Have you stopped to think that maybe Chuck has been a little preoccupied lately? That he _might _have more on his mind than coming up with stupid pranks to play on you in some misguided attempt to make your mom and your brother like him?"

"You're acting like he's suddenly above that!"

"And you got him kicked out." Too frustrated and angry to speak to her anymore, she stormed away and hailed another cab, this time instructing the driver to take her to the Palace. She was sure she would find him in 1812 again, but she was mad that Serena caused this and irritated that he didn't think he should tell her. How was he going to help her with the baby when he lived in a hotel?

When she arrived at the suite, Chuck didn't answer the door. "Bass," she demanded. "Open up. It's me."

She waited another minute or two, then rapped on the door again and called for him once more. Finally, he swung the door open, looking irritated and…depressed? Her anger evaportated, replaced by a pang of sympathy. "Waldorf," he acknowledged.

"Serena told me you were here," she said quietly.

"How is my dear sister?" he asked wryly as he stepped aside to let her in.

"I know you didn't send those packages."

"You believe me?" he asked in surprise.

"Of course," she shrugged casually.

"Well, you're the first," he responded, unable to hide the bitterness in his voice. She sat down on the couch, and he took a seat on the other end. "Bart thought it would be best if the family…bonded without me." His fist clenched a little, and she had a feeling he would do just about anything to have a glass of scotch to wash down the resentment.

"I'm sorry, Chuck. That's not fair."

"He expects the worst of me," he continued, as though she hadn't spoken at all. "I guess he should."

"That's not true," she shook her head.

"Don't worry. I'm not taking it back."

"Good to know, but that's not what I'm worried about."

"I didn't want to be there in the first place," he countered. "It's better that I'm here."

"Chuck," she sighed, knowing it was bullshit and not really wanting to battle her way through a brick wall right now. Maybe she and Chuck were in some weird limbo between hating each other and being in a relationship, but she'd known him her whole life, and she knew how desperate he was for his father's approval. She'd seen it on his face when he showed her Victrola, and she'd seen it a hundred other times. He was lonely, plain and simple. He grew up alone, and then suddenly he'd been given a family. Maybe it was a family he hadn't chosen, maybe even a family he didn't want, but it was something he never had. Now it had been ripped away from him, and worse, his father had immediately believed the worst without even considering that his son might not be guilty. And maybe Chuck did have a history of things like this, maybe he did have a reputation for causing trouble, but a parent should take their child's side, a parent should stand up for their child and defend him, especially when he claimed innocence.

"He made me his best man," he informed her suddenly, but he didn't sound happy about it.

"That's good," she said, trying to sound encouraging.

"Lily made him. He thought it would force me to _behave,_" he spat. "And the ironic thing is, I actually have been trying."

"Chuck, your father is wrong to just write you off like that," she said seriously. Because he _had _been trying and she didn't want him to think it wasn't enough, that he wasn't enough. He was trying to become a real man so he could be a father, and if his own father kept putting him down, he'd send him back on a downward spiral into random girls and expensive booze.

"I don't need your pity, Blair," he told her bluntly. "Now did you have a reason for coming over here, or are you just here to cheer me up? You're wearing way too many clothes for that," he grinned lecherously.

She did have a reason for coming, but somehow, now didn't seem like the time to discuss it. "Yes, Chuck," she rolled her eyes. "I heard you got kicked out so I came over to have consolation sex with you. Take me now," she said dryly.

"If you insist."

"Chuck."

"I know, I'm disgusting," he sighed dramatically.

"You are," she agreed, "but that isn't what I was going to say."

"Enlighten me," he drawled. He was obviously trying, whether intentionally or on a subconscious level, to drive her away so he could sit around her and sulk alone. Too bad for him, she could be just as stubborn.

"Serena was wrong. We'll do what we need to do to convince your father."

"No," he shook his head. "My father's made up his mind."

"Then we'll change it," she said simply.

"Blair," he silenced her with a look.

"Well, you can't have a baby in a hotel room," she said, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"I'll figure something out."

"Or you could let me-"

"No," he demanded one last time. "Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to be alone right now."

"Let me help you," she requested quietly.

"I don't need help. They aren't my family."

"I am."

"Blair," he sighed.

"The boy I thought I was going to marry won't speak to me anymore. I get larger by the day. When everyone finds out about this, I'll be the laughing stock of the Upper East Side. As much as I _hate_ to say this, and believe me, it pains me to no end, you and Serena are all I have," she informed him flatly.

"That's touching, Blair," he said, trying to sound sarcastic. But she detected a hint of something else in his voice, and that was enough for her.

"Let's watch a movie," he suggested.

"Another movie? I don't usually spend this much time in a bed with a girl unless-"

"Chuck," she stopped him before he could finish. "I'm not having sex with you."

"You're already pregnant," he teased her. "What's the worst that could happen?"

"Do you really want me to provide you with a list? Would you like it chronological or alphabetical?"

"Pick a movie, Waldorf."

She helped herself to his insane collection of movies and selected one at random, then loaded it into the DVD player. He was waiting for her on the bed, so she joined him there and got comfortable. They'd only been watching the movie for a few minutes when someone knocked on the door, but he stopped her before she could pause it.

"It's probably just the staff. I'll be right back," he told her as he climbed out of the bed. She paused it anyway and sat up to wait for him. When she heard Serena's voice, she was immediately up and next to him, ready to give her best friend a verbal lashing on his behalf.

At the look on Serena's face, she stopped dead in her tracks. "I'm really sorry, Chuck," the blonde was telling him. "I know it wasn't you who sent me that stuff."

Interest piqued, Blair stepped a little closer as Serena offered Chuck some kind of card. Chuck read the card, and then his head immediately snapped up. He turned and glanced at her, briefly, then stepped aside to let Serena in. "Why don't I make you a drink."


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Thank you, thank you, thank you for all the great responses. You're all amazing! Finals are coming up, so updates might be sporadic, but I'm still chugging along! Thanks for reading and reviewing!**

"Wait a second, you're telling me Georgina Sparks was sending you those packages?" Blair asked incredulously, not sure if she was more upset about the look on Serena's face or the look on Chuck's. The upside of growing up together was having this allegiance that somehow seemed to make it through everything. The downside, of course, was knowing everything about the other's past. And she knew that Georgina was Chuck's first. In the sixth grade. Blair didn't even fully comprehend what sex _was_ in the sixth grade (though Serena had quickly set her straight), and Chuck had lost his virginity to the girl. She was hands down the craziest girl to set foot on the Upper East Side, and that was saying something.

"Blair, I've told you to stay out of this," Chuck warned her again. The three of them were sitting at the bar, Serena drinking a dangerously strong Chuck concoction and Chuck himself nursing a scotch while she was stuck with sparkling water.

"I'm pregnant, not an invalid," she snapped, irritated that he seemed to think she couldn't participate in any of this now that she was bearing his spawn. He may be the baby's father, but he had another thing coming if he really thought he was going to control her for the next six months.

"She says she's coming back to New York," Serena lamented, sounding more distressed by the minute. The alcohol didn't seem to be calming her, either. Blair narrowed her eyes suspiciously, realising there was more going on than Serena claimed. She had sworn she was upset because Georgina was a reminder of another time, a time before Dan, a time when she partied too much and was completely irresponsible. And that was true. Georgina had always brought out the worst in Serena, but they'd all been there to witness it, and Serena had never seemed all that anxious to cover up her past. Dan already knew she'd slept with Nate, and somehow he'd gotten over that, so what more could she actually be worried about?

"Is there something you want to share with the class, S?" Blair asked knowingly.

"What?" Serena asked, feigning innocence, but doing so poorly. She got that hurt look on her face that was clearly a joke, that mock innocence that only people who didn't grow up with Serena would fall for. "No, nothing, B."

"Serena," Chuck rolled his eyes. "What does the bitch have on you?"

"Nothing!" Serena attempted to defend herself. "You know how I used to get when I was with her."

"Yes, I remember," Chuck answered wryly in a tone that made Blair desperately want to slap him. He couldn't _honestly_ be lusting after Serena when she was right here in the room…could he? "But the point remains," he continued, "that Brooklyn already knows of your…infidelities. What are you so worried about?"

"It's just…we have the SATs," Serena managed lamely.

Blair frowned, first because she didn't buy that excuse, and second because she'd practically forgotten about the SATs altogether. She started taking classes months ago, and before the Nate/Chuck/baby fiasco she spent much of her time studying, but it didn't really matter now, did it? She wouldn't be going to Yale, so what did she care? Still, if she hoped to go to anything other than some dreadful public school, she better get back to studying. "Yes, and we all know your commitment to scholastic excellence," she said smartly.

"Blair," Chuck sighed. "Why don't you let me handle this?"

It was a scandal besides her own life, and Blair wanted in, so she just scowled at him. He was nonplussed, however, and turned back to Serena.

"I'll check into it," Chuck assured his future stepsister. "She might just be trying to get to you. But it would help if you would tell us what you're so worried about."

"I just don't need her coming back into my life right now."

"There's one thing we're agreed on," he responded wryly.

"I need to get back. You'll let me know what you find out?"

"Wait, aren't you forgetting something?" Blair asked as Serena rose and grabbed her purse. Both her companions looked to her in confusion, and she just rolled her eyes. Typical. "I'm talking about Chuck. You got him kicked out. Don't you think you should get him invited back?"

"Blair."

"What?" she asked innocently.

"Of course," Serena agreed. "I'll tell your father that it wasn't you."

"Actually, I'd prefer if you didn't."

"What are you talking about?" Blair asked him. "You can't be serious. You don't want to keep living in this hotel."

"Blair, we'll talk about it later," he tried to placate.

"We're having a baby. In six months," she reminded him pointedly. "And you want to live in a hotel?"

"We'll talk about it later," he said again.

"Yes, we certainly will," she snapped. Without bothering to say goodbye to Serena, she stormed away into the bathroom and slammed the door behind her. She actually wasn't planning to purge at the moment, but she wanted some privacy and she wanted to get away from both of them.

"Blair," Chuck called five minutes later as he knocked on the door. "Blair, come out."

She briefly debated making him suffer a little longer, but dammit, she was getting hungry. She opened the door, but she glared at him to make sure he knew he was still in trouble. "Really, Bass? A hotel?"

"It is the Palace," he tried to joke.

"I don't care! Why wouldn't you want Serena to tell them the truth?"

"My father was all too quick to believe it about me, Blair," he reminded her. "I'm not going to move back in just to be thrown out the next time he decides I'm 'corrupting' Serena and Eric."

"And when the baby comes?" she challenged.

"Maybe then I'll move back. But for now, I think I need to be here."

She stared at him for a moment, still not liking the idea. She knew he was upset by his father's rejection, so why didn't he want to go back home? He could argue all he wanted, but she knew he wanted to be a part of a family. Why was he refusing to return now that he actually had a second chance at it? "Fine," she conceded. "But don't think we won't discuss this later."

"Whatever you want, Princess," he answered sarcastically.

"And another thing."

"Blair," he groaned. "I'm starved. Aren't you hungry? Why don't we order some food?"

"You can order me the risotto, but that's not going to get you out of this."

"If this is about Georgina," Chuck began.

"I don't appreciate being treated like I'm incapable, Chuck," she warned him.

"Stay out of this, Blair," he warned her, a strange edge to his voice. "I'll take care of it."

"What are you planning? I want in."

"I'm not planning anything. I'm just going to touch base with a few people, find out where she is. If she's coming to New York, I'll deal with it."

"You're scheming!" she protested. "Don't you think I need to be distracted? You could at least let me-"

"NO," he said firmly. To emphasise the point, he picked up the phone and called for room service, ordering the risotto for her, a steak for himself, and a warm chocolate souffle cake in addition. She knew that wasn't available on the room service menu, and she had a feeling he was using her love for the decadent dessert against her.

"Souffle cake? Really, Bass?"

"If I recall correctly, it's your favourite Gilt dessert."

"Georgina has something on Serena. I want to know what it is," she stated plainly. "God only knows what she sees in that dirty Brooklyn boy, but there's something she

wants kept hidden from him. Something only Georgina knows."

"That may be true, but you need to stay out of this, Blair. I'll take care of it. Georgina's probably not anywhere near New York, but if she is, stay away from her," he demanded.

"Why? Are you that worried about what she has on you?" she taunted.

Surprisingly, he turned and gripped her arms with shocking force. It wasn't enough to hurt her, but it was enough to startle her. "I'm thinking about you, Blair. Georgina is psychotic. The last thing we need is for that little bitch to break the news to everyone."

He abruptly dropped her arms and left her standing there stunned as he returned to the bar for his scotch. He may have a point there; she had never liked Georgina, even though Serena often partied with the girl, and she knew that Georgina would have no qualms in using her for her own twisted plots. It wouldn't be long now before the pregnancy was obvious to everyone, and if Georgina was the first to find out, there was no telling how miserable life would become for both of them. So yes, Chuck might have a point, but he had forgotten one very important thing. Blair Waldorf was Queen, and Blair Waldorf would not back down, especially for a psycho bitch taunting her best friend with disgusting "gifts." She would not cower in the corner for anyone, least of all Georgina Sparks. Pregnant or not, she would not back down.

If Georgina dared to show her face, she better be prepared to be destroyed.

**********

Chuck was in a mood for the rest of the night, and finally, Blair left him to his own devices. He promptly set about tracking down Georgina, calling every source he could think of to locate her. It was a favour to Serena, in a way, but really, he was more concerned about the wreck Georgina would make of his own life if she sauntered back to New York. Like it or not, Serena was his business now, and clearly she came undone at the mention of the other girl. He wanted to know what was behind the meltdown, but he also wanted to keep Georgina far away from Blair. He noticed tonight that she was starting to show, just a little, and though he would never be the one to bring it up lest he risk almost certain death, it was only a matter of time before the whole school knew she was expecting. Georgina would put it together first, and she'd had some strange obsession with him since the sixth grade. If she spotted a way to make his life hell, she wouldn't hesitate to jump on it. At the moment she was just out for Serena, but since he could no longer disentangle his life from the reformed party girl, their paths were destined to cross.

Serena's mention of the SATs also reminded him of a task he needed to accomplish. Blair would kill him if she knew, but his grades weren't always stellar, his disciplinary record left a lot to be desired, and if he wanted to get into a school like Columbia, he needed to do well on the test. But he wasn't going to leave this one up to chance. He neither had the time nor the desire to actually study, so he made another quick call or two and arranged to meet his replacement before school.

Once a source informed him that Georgina was dating a prince in some far off European country, Chuck felt significantly better. Hopefully the bitch just planned to taunt Serena a while and then disappear again, and it couldn't happen soon enough. He informed Serena of that happy news first thing when he found her at school, then went off to find Blair.

"Good morning, Beautiful," he greeted her when he snuck up behind her at her locker.

"What are you doing here?" she asked with her usual welcoming tone.

"Apologising," he answered, reaching around to hand her a box of chocolates. The gold collection – her favourite. "I'm sorry for how I acted. I was…distracted last night. You'll be happy to know Georgina's not going to be a problem."

"We aren't discussing this here," she said firmly as she slammed her locked door shut but accepted the box of chocolates. "Thank you," she smiled too sweetly. "There was something I wanted to discuss with you. After school?"

"Meet me out front. We'll take the limo."

She nodded in approval, then turned around and walked towards her own classroom. He stared after her for a moment, feeling relatively pleased with himself. He'd dealt with Serena and with Blair, and neither of them seemed to want to snap his head off. It was the start of a good day, in his books.

That afternoon, Blair met him at his limo but promptly fell asleep on the ride to the Palace. He hated to disturb her when they arrived, but he could hardly carry her upstairs, especially without rousing unwanted attention. "Blair," he whispered as he shook her gently. "We're here."

Her eyes fluttered open, and he felt a strange pang ripple through him as he watched her wake. Dealing with impending parenthood was trouble enough at the moment, but he wasn't sure how much longer he could stand being with her without _being_ with her. It had been weeks now since they found out she was pregnant, and that meant it had been weeks since he last had sex. It was a new record for him, but a record he desperately needed to break soon. Unfortunately, Blair's feelings towards him ran the gamut from disgust to tolerance. Besides, Blair was insecure on a good day, and the growing bump beneath her shirt probably wasn't doing that self-esteem problem any favours. Still, she looked beautiful just waking up from her impromptu nap, her eyes heavy with sleep and her cheek red from where she had rested it on the seat.

He climbed out of the limo before he could make any rash and unwelcome advances, and she wearily followed him up to the suite. She immediately made herself at home in his bed, leaving whatever it was she wanted to discuss with him for later.

While she slept, he took a stab at his homework before growing bored and flipping on the television. His stomach eventually started to rumble, and he considered calling room service and ordering a plate for Blair. He quickly thought better of it, remembering the way she recently turned up her nose at some of her favourite dishes. He decided to give her another twenty minutes, and then he was ordering without her.

Before her twenty minutes were up, his phone began to ring and flashed Serena's name. He groaned to himself and then answered, immediately hearing the loud noise of a bar in the background. "Serena," he greeted.

"I'm so stupid," she began. "I'm so so so stupid."

He glanced into the bedroom, making sure Blair was still asleep, then rose and headed over to the bar to keep his voice from waking her. "You don't sound stupid. You sound drunk," he noted. "What have you been into?"

"Georgina. Good news is she doesn't want anything except to party. Bad news is, I partied," she lamented, sounding absolutely miserable.

"Care to paint a picture? Does this party require clothes?" he couldn't help taunting. If he was going to help her, he sure as hell wasn't doing it for free.

"I'm supposed to be at Dan's studying! I called to tell him I'd be late but not this late. I just have to call him and say-"

"That instead of studying with him you're out with your old pal, Georgina."

"No!" she cried. "I don't want him to know she exists. My mom, Blair, even _you_ can't stand her. Dan of all people cannot know Georgie." She sniffled a few times, and he rolled his eyes, knowing what came next. Serena could feign disgust with him at all the appropriate times, but he and Blair and Nate had cleaned up her messes dozens of times. "Can you help me?" she asked in a small voice. That voice had gotten her everywhere before, but he hadn't forgotten her complicity in getting him kicked out, and he hadn't forgotten his determination to keep Georgina away from Blair, either.

"Serena, you can do whatever you want with Georgina, and I'll clean up your mess," he informed her, "but only if you keep Blair out of this."

"I'm not going to see her again!" she cried in indignation.

"Forgive me if I'd like a little more assurance than that," he answered wryly.

"I won't drag her into this," she promised. "Now will you please help me?"

"I'll take care of it and pick you up in ten," he agreed, then snapped his phone shut.

Just after he placed the call to Humphrey and made up a story about food poisoning, Blair wandered out to the living area looking deliciously unkempt. He really wanted to ravish her right now, and he decided Serena was going to owe him big time for this. "Serena has food poisoning?" Blair asked sleepily.

"A little more like alcohol poisoning."

"Hmm?" she asked in confusion.

"Look, I'm going to have to go," he informed her regretfully. "Serena got herself into some trouble."

"You said Georgina-"

"I'm taking care of it," he cut her off.

"Chuck," she protested. "I could help."

"I'm just picking Serena up. Why don't you stay here," he suggested. "Order some food."

"I needed to talk to you," she pouted.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," he promised. "Order whatever you want. The kitchen can make you anything."

She was glaring at him when he left, her expression clearly commanding him not to walk out the door or risk severe punishment, but unfortunately, he was going to have to take that risk. Thanks to his dear soon-to-be sister, he was going to have to deal with the full wrath of Blair Waldorf. She would owe him dearly for this, but maybe that wasn't the worst case scenario.

"Chuuuck!" Serena cried as he nearly peeled her off the floor. "Oh, you came!"

Chuck rolled his eyes and wrapped an arm around her to keep her steady as they staggered to the limo. With some struggle, he managed to get her in the car and instructed Arthur to return them to the Palace. If he took her home like this, no doubt his father would think him responsible. Home was really the last place Serena needed to be in this state. "Serena, I want you to listen to me," he commanded as they headed back to his suite. "Are you listening?"

She nodded, clearly overcompensating and making a defiant effort to look sober even though her eyes were wide and she was swaying a little.

"You can do whatever the fuck you want with Georgina," he told her plainly. "I don't care what you do."

"Chuck, I'm not going to see her again," she tried to defend herself.

"Please, Serena," he scoffed. "We both know where this is headed."

"Chuck!" she cried in an almost convincing display of righteous indignation. "I have a boyfriend. Who I love. This was a one time mistake."

"As sweet as the sentiment is," he said wryly, "Georgina has something on you or you wouldn't have even been here tonight. Care to share with your brother?"

"I told you, there's no secret," she insisted. But in her drunkenness, lying became even harder. It was obvious she wasn't telling the truth, but at the moment, he didn't particularly care.

"Like I said, I don't care what you do. I'll clean up your messes so the family doesn't find out, so long as you leave Blair out of this."

"Chuck, I'm serious. I'm done with her."

"Then it shouldn't be a problem."

Serena just glared at him, but she finally shut up and rested her head against the window as they made their way back to the Palace. Things were going to be a little crowded with both her and Blair, but Blair was already upset about being left out, and he knew he couldn't just make her go home. He would have to thank Bart later for infinitely complicating his life and adding a problematic sibling to the mix, and he could only hope this baby would be a boy so he wouldn't be completely surrounded by women.

Serena moaned in drunken agony when they pulled up to the Palace, so he rolled his eyes and grabbed her arm, all but dragging her up to his suite. They staggered inside, and he heard the sound of the television from the bedroom. "Honey, I'm home," he called jokingly.

"And me!" Serena added. "Beeeee? Are you here?"

Blair suddenly appeared in the doorway, eyeing her best friend in disapproval. "What happened to her?" she asked as she headed to the bar to fill a glass with water. They were obviously going to need it if they hoped to get Serena sober anytime tonight.

"Georgina happened," he answered wryly. "Apparently she brought the Old Serena back."

"Can't she…go home?"

"Lily might not mind, but Bart is another story. She'll have to stay here until she can at least act like she's sober."

"That's going to be a while," Blair sighed wearily, handing her best friend the glass of water. Serena took it and greedily began to drink, but Blair just stood there and glared at her. He was surprised by the amount of hostility in her eyes; normally, Blair was the loyal friend who would nurse Serena through the worst of her drugged and drunken escapades and rarely complain. That was just the kind of friend she was. Once you were in Blair's corner, you were protected by the fiercest loyalty. It could be overwhelming at times, but it was exactly what someone like Serena needed. In many ways, Blair had raised Serena more than Lily had, and though he knew Serena returned the favour, there was still something unique and powerful about Blair's protection of the few she loved. At the moment, however, she looked like she'd like to kick Serena to the curb. It could just be the pregnancy hormones turning an already mostly unpleasant person into something even more terrifying, but then he remembered there was something she wanted to talk to him about. He fought the growing urge to bolt to the bar, especially after already dealing with Serena today. He was Chuck Bass, not a saint. Comforting and caretaking weren't really in his vocabulary, so how did he suddenly find himself responsible for both of these incredibly difficult women?

"You wanted to talk to me?" he forced himself to ask.

"Not now, Bass," she snapped irritably. "We have company."

"She's drunk."

Blair just shot him a look, then swiveled on her heel and returned to the bedroom, closing the door behind her. Apparently bearing his child gave her rights over his entire suite (probably more like his life), but being stuck with Serena was hardly how he envisioned his evening. He decided he'd done his good deed for the day and left his stepsister alone, letting himself into his own bedroom no matter what Blair said.

"Leave me alone," she ordered as she climbed beneath the covers.

"You can't both take over my suite, Blair. I live here," he reminded her wryly.

"That's your fault."

"And hers."

"Fine, throw me out."

"I'm not throwing you out," he sighed, trying not to lose his patience. "What was it you wanted to talk to me about? I'm pretty sure Serena's going to be on the couch for a while. We can have our privacy."

"I don't want to talk to you while she's here!" she protested heatedly. "Just forget it, Bass. You don't care anyway."

"Blair," he groaned, really not in the mood for tears at the moment. "I'm sorry about Serena. It couldn't be helped. Do you want me to drag her back to the penthouse? It's her own fault. We can just let her deal with it."

"No," she sniffled. "We can't do that."

"Okay, then what exactly do you want me to do?"

"Leave me alone," she commanded again.

"Fine. I'm going to the bar," he announced curtly. He was mostly doing it to piss her off, but he didn't stick around to hear her outcry.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Sorry on the long wait! Finals will do that to you, and I had trouble writing this one! Hopefully updates will be semi-regular again soon! Thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing!**

For the next week, Blair was not-so-subtly silent. Chuck kept checking his cell phone, thinking he'd missed a phone call or a text message, but the only messages he received were from Gossip Girl. He normally amused himself with the antics and social missteps of others, but with Gossip Girl mostly reporting on his future stepsister's idiocy with one of few people Chuck truly hated, the gossip seemed to have lost its appeal. He clicked through a few photos, fighting the bile that rose to his mouth at the sight of that evil whore. As long as Blair wasn't in the picture and Serena was keeping her word, he was taking a hands-off approach to this dilemma. He helped Serena, but his charity extended only so far. And his charity did not extend to Georgina Sparks. If Serena insisted on carrying on this charade with her "friend," he would politely excuse himself from the drama.

Blair seemed to be insulating herself from Gossip Girl's sights with remarkable aplomb. She kept her head held high as though she didn't hear the whispers or notice the way other girls stared at her. Some of the spotlight shifted to Serena now that Georgina was back in town, but the Upper East Side still had a hit out on information regarding the Archibald-Waldorf split and the subsequent fisticuffs in the St. Jude's hallway. Blair seemed above it all, however, showing up at school every day with not a single curl out of place despite morning sickness and the increasingly difficult task of buttoning those sweet little skirts of hers. He took a sick pleasure in observing her daily wardrobe adjustments, secretly admiring from afar the tightness in the once loose blouses and the little accessories she used to cover up the extra space around her midsection. To the casual observer, she looked like the Upper East Side princess she'd always been. To someone who knew better, the signs were everywhere. She meticulously covered up the growing baby bump, but he knew where to look. She donned sweaters and ruffles and ties to conceal the buttons that didn't quite meet across her breasts, but seeing the way she changed was one of the few pleasures in his suddenly dull life. It wouldn't be much longer now, so he didn't torture her too much with snide remarks about just how enjoyable he found her new appearance. As soon as the buzz about Georgina died down, the girls at school would pay a little more attention to Blair's sudden figure change, and it wouldn't be a far leap from there.

The SATs came and went, and Chuck made sure that his future was not left up to chance and paid a genius from another school to take his for him. He would probably end up working for Bass, but Blair expected him to at least apply for college, and with less-than stellar grades (more a product of apathy than actual intelligence), he needed the amazing SAT score to assure his admission into a school like Columbia. When he still hadn't heard from Blair a few days after the SATs, he started to get a little suspicious. There was a sudden blast about Jenny Humphrey and her new boy toy, but the whole thing reeked of Blair. She was playing this cool, ensuring her social dominance before the scandal inevitably blew up. She had accounted for every detail, and he expected her to call any day now to inform him of their action plan for announcing the pregnancy. Of course Blair would want to control the leak of information, securing as much control as she possibly could. It made it easier for him, honestly, that Blair didn't ask for his input and just made all the plans for them, so he was, for now, mostly unconcerned about how the news finally became public.

If he had any clue just what Serena and Georgina were up to, he might have rethought that nonchalance.

With the wedding drawing ever-nearer, Chuck found himself called home more frequently than usual and dressed in his typical outlandish apparel he was certain would cause his father to glare at him with that harsh look of disapproval. It was a fun little game he played now, trying to silently provoke his father even in the midst of imminent wedded bliss. Once the wedding no longer required his presence, he had a feeling the new Bass family wouldn't be needing him that often, so he might as well annoy the old man while he could.

As he sauntered through the penthouse, he noted Dan looking like a lost puppy as he no doubt searched for his girlfriend. "I knew housekeeping was hiring, but I had no idea their standards were so low," he taunted as he sampled some of the food set out for the family. He was just in the midst of torturing Humphrey when his phone buzzed in his pocket and flashed Blair's name. "Are you drunk dialling again?" he couldn't help teasing, just for the irony of it.

"Cut it out, Chuck. Not the time. Do you know where Serena is?"

"No, I don't know where Serena is," he said, intentionally repeating it for Humphrey's benefit. Or, more accurately, to piss the guy off. "She didn't come home last night," he added, recalling the perfectly made and obviously unused bed.

"Come over," Blair demanded.

"I told you to stay out of this, Blair," he reminded her as he stepped onto the elevator, already planning to head to the Waldorf's.

"Come over, Bass," she demanded, leaving no room for argument. He knew better than to challenge that tone, so he assured her he was on his way then hung up.

Twenty minutes later, he caught the elevator and suddenly wished he hadn't when he was met with the stone cold face of his former best friend. No one could do brooding like Nate Archibald, but it always looked just a little ridiculous, like his hurt was mostly feigned for the camera, like the photoshoot people were coaching him through the perfect pensive expression. "Hey," he said awkwardly, watching Nate's jaw clench. He probably should have stayed silent, but he rarely erred on the side of social niceties. "I thought you didn't want to ever see or talk to Blair again."

"Are you seriously talking to me right now?" Nate asked incredulously.

Chuck just shrugged, not sure what he was supposed to say to that.

"She said it was about Serena," Nate added after a moment.

Of course. Chuck couldn't stop himself from rolling his eyes, tempted to point out

that Nate was holding this ridiculous grudge when it was obvious he was still lusting after the blonde. The fact that he would show up here, against his own pronouncement that he never wanted to see them again, just spoke to the level of his own hypocrisy. They stepped off the elevator without another word, but the penthouse was shockingly quiet for whatever crisis required both his presence and Nate's. "Maybe this is Blair's idea of a perverse double date," he suggested wryly.

Moments later, Dorota appeared and instructed them both to wait. Nate seemed even more righteously indignant, but Chuck found a seat, starting to grow a little concerned that Blair wasn't here. He warned her, and he warned Serena. Serena was not supposed to let Georgina get close to Blair. For all her confident and cool appearance at school, he'd seen her at the vulnerable moments of the pregnancy thus far, and he knew she wasn't handling it nearly as well as she claimed. Georgina prided herself in being Chuck's first, always lording it over him, trying to bait him, taunting him with the pleasure she introduced him to. The last thing Blair needed was to be around Georgina Sparks right now, and if Georgina figured out even one tiny scrap of what had happened between him and Blair, he had no doubt that she would wage full-scale psychological warfare against Blair. Everyone knew you hurt Serena by hurting Blair, and vice versa, and Georgina had a unique ability to zero in on her prey's vulnerability. Blair was good, but she couldn't possibly understand the pathos of a true sociopath like Georgina.

He felt only moderately better when Blair stepped off the elevator looking polished and pretty and only moderately distressed. She ushered them to the elevator, and just as he expected, Serena was a total disaster. It reeked of the old Serena, even more than the drunken escapade he so recently rescued her from. This was bad, he decided, as he and Nate hoisted the nearly unconscious girl into their arms and began to carry her upstairs. Blair was barking out orders in typical fashion, and he had a feeling his dear sister had consumed more than just alcohol considering her level of incoherence at the moment. But Blair was in top form, probably enjoying being in charge and being the put-together one at the moment, so he did as instructed and went out to retrieve various hangover cures and breakfast for everyone. When he returned, they were struggling to get Serena into the shower, and Blair closed the door just as the retching began.

"What's going on with her?" Nate asked in concern.

"She was here last night, scared. She told me something totally crazy, but she was too freaked out to find out the words to explain it. I went upstairs to find some of my mother's Valium to calm her down, but when I got back she was gone. It took me all night to find her."

"Blair," he reprimanded, turning to her with a glare. "We talked about this."

"Talked about what?" Nate asked in confusion.

"And I told you I'm not an invalid," she snapped. "It's not the time for this discussion, Chuck."

"You went out looking for them. Are you insane?" he accused. "Do you have any idea what Georgina will do if-"

"Chuck!" she cut him off angrily. "Serena is in crisis. We are here to help her." With that, she spun around and returned to the bathroom to tend to her best friend, leaving Chuck to stand awkwardly with Nate until they were needed again.

Blair took no pleasure in the total meltdown before her, in the sound of Serena's retching, in the mumbled words and incoherent sentences that offered no explanation of the sudden and shocking regression to the Serena of the past. Like it or not, Dan Humphrey seemed to bring out a new side to Serena, a happier, more bubbly, less neurotic and tortured version of the girl she'd grown up with. Serena had always exorcised her demons through the attentions of men and the consumption of all things in excess, but the Serena 2.0 drank less, studied more, and spent more time in Brooklyn lofts than in the bathrooms at various Manhattan bars. This sudden return to drunken dalliances with Georgina Sparks both startled and disturbed Blair, but as she held back Serena's hair and helped her into the shower, she decided it was just a bit of a relief not to be the mess again. Between bulimia relapses, two breakups with her childhood love, and a teen pregnancy, the focus had been on Blair for quite a while. While she wouldn't wish this fate on her best friend, she would gladly step into the role of caretaker for a while.

"B," Serena mumbled as Blair attempted to help her into a robe. "You're such a good friend. You're my _best_ friend."

"You're my best friend, too, S," she placated and struggled to get Serena's arm into the sleeve.

"You're going to make such a good mom. Amazing," Serena told her emphatically.

It was just a little amusing, so Blair just smiled a little in indulgence and smoothed down her best friend's crazy hair. "Thank you, S. I hope so," she said softly.

"Georgie didn't believe me," Serena continued her drunken ramble. "But I told her you'll be the best mom. The _best_, B."

Any warm feelings she previously felt for her best friend evaporated, replaced by a chill of fear. "What are you talking about?" she asked nervously, desperately hoping Serena didn't have a clue what she was saying and was not recalling actual conversation. Blair had a perfectly outlined plan for how they would announce this pregnancy. It was the only way to keep from becoming a total social mockery. She was going to be the one to release the news, announcing it to her inner circle as a rational decision she and Chuck were very happy about. The less disturbed she appeared, the less fun it would be for everyone to rub it in her face.

"It's too bright in here," Serena moaned, turning to face her best friend with her best puppy dog eyes. They were still lined with black, though most of the liner and mascara was now sliding down her cheeks, so it was a weird effect and Blair turned her back around, not concerned about Serena's headache at the moment.

"Serena, did you tell Georgina about the baby?" she demanded as she finally succeeded in tying the robe around her friend's waist. Of course, Serena chose just that moment to start throwing up again, and any answers Blair had hoped to get weren't coming from Serena. On edge, she left Serena on the floor and slipped out of the bathroom. "Watch her," she told Chuck. He looked bored, seated on her bed waiting for his next order, so she suspected he hadn't heard the conversation in the bathroom. "I'm going to get coffee."

"Dorota just made some."

"We're out of decaf," she improvised. "I'll be back in a few, so you two just keep an eye on her," she commanded, quickly grabbing her purse and her jacket before he could ask questions or call her on the blatant lie.

As soon as she was safely outside the penthouse, she grabbed her phone and texted Georgina. "Need to talk to u. Address? – B."

It took less than a minute to get a response, so she quickly hailed a cab and directed the driver to Georgina's hotel. She wasted no time getting to Georgina's room, and within seconds of knocking, the door swung open to reveal a falsely excited brunette.

"B!" Georgina greeted happily. "I've been expecting you."

"So sorry I didn't disappoint you," she retorted as she pushed past Georgina and into the hotel room.

"Are you here about Serena?" Georgina asked, feigning innocence. "She did get a little out of control last night. I told her she should have stopped after the-"

"I am not interested in what you and Serena did last night. I'm interested in one thing, and you know what it is. Now, I don't want to spend a second longer in your presence than absolutely necessary, so tell me what I have to do to keep you quiet," she demanded, not the slightest bit interested in play one of Georgina's twisted games. Blair could scheme, but Georgina's games were a different level of crazy. They weren't the brilliant plots she and Chuck could come up with, but rather the machinations of the truly insane. They weren't always successful, but they were always destructive.

"I'm in possession of Queen B's dirtiest little secret," Georgina smiled. "What makes you think there's anything you can do to convince me to keep quiet?"

"Everyone has a price. What do you want, _Whore_gina?" she spit.

"Now now," Georgina scolded mildly. "Do you really want to upset me? I can have this to Gossip Girl whenver I want, and all the world will know what a whore you really are. Really now, B. Chuck Bass? You know he'll just disappoint you. It's what he does."

"You know what, you're probably right. Let's go get manicures and discuss our boy problems together. I really enjoy our girl time," she said sarcastically.

"I forgot how witty you were," Georgina laughed in delight. "I'm sure Chuck appreciates that. Among other things. But soon your looks will go, and all you'll have is your wit. It's not enough to keep him around, B. Chuck isn't a one-woman guy. I know that better than anyone. You do know I was his first, right?" smirking that madwoman grin of hers.

"We're both trying hard to forget," she smiled sweetly.

"Chuck won't ever forget me. How could he? I taught him everything he knows. And then he betrayed me."

"Georgina," she began slowly in a patronising tone. "I'm not interested in hearing the story behind your spiral into a stalking psycho bitch. Let's cut story time short, and you can tell me what it's going to cost for your silence."

"The game has changed, B," Georgina answered a little too sweetly. "I thought I was just here for Serena. But this new…development," she said, allowing her lips to linger on the word as she looked pointedly to Blair's stomach. "It's inspired me. Now there's something else I want, and you're going to help me get it."

"You're insane."

"Maybe. But you're desperate," Georgina countered. "I know you, Blair. And I know you want to control this. So you're going to do what I tell you to do, or I'm sending this to Gossip Girl."

"Do you really think you can get to Chuck by sending this to Gossip Girl? Everyone is going to find out anyway," she bluffed.

"No, but it will get to you," Georgina countered. "And you're the one who's going to make sure that I have some fun with Chuck. We both know your only loyalty is to yourself, B. Now, are we playing, or should I go ahead and share your – _our _– little secret with Gossip Girl?"

Blair tried her hardest not to falter, knowing she couldn't give into Georgina. A part of her wanted to sell Chuck out to prevent this from getting out of hand, but turning him over to this sociopath could turn out to be either completely innocuous or completely disastrous. It was a chance she didn't want to take, but at the moment, she couldn't see a way around it. Given time and an opportunity to scheme, she had no doubt she could outsmart Georgina. But one well-placed text message was all it took for her life to go up in flames, and Georgina would send it before she could even step foot outside the hotel room.

"I see you're having some trouble deciding. I'll give you a minute," Georgina announced and disappeared momentarily. Blair considered texting Chuck for help, but there was little he could do from her penthouse, and he'd be furious that she lied about where she was going. "Here," Georgina offered returning with a glass of ice and a bottled water. "Let's sit down," she suggested and gestured to the couch. "You're looking a little pale. I wouldn't want you getting sick on me."

Blair frowned but accepted the drink and sat down opposite Georgina. She was tired and thirsty, and Georgina had delivered the drink in a sealed bottle from the mini bar. "Chuck is all you want," she stated as she poured the water. "What do you want with him?"

"Just to remind him of all the fun we had," Georgina answered simply.

"Chuck wants nothing to do with you."

"Do you really think he wants anything to do with you?" Georgina asked, laughing a little and then stifling herself as though she felt guilty. "I'm sorry, I'm not laughing at you. It's just…Blair…let's be honest. You might have fascinated him for a while. The forbidden fruit and all. His best friend's girlfriend. But you're _used_ now. Whatever passing curiosity Chuck had for you will fade. Besides, it only gets worse from here. That little skirt isn't going to button much longer, now is it?"

It shouldn't mean anything, especially coming from Georgina, but the whore was good at targeting someone's weaknesses, just as Blair was herself.

"Chuck doesn't stay with one girl for long anyway. Do you really think you stand

a chance just because you're having his baby?"

"Who says I even want anything to do with him?" she countered.

"You're….Blair Waldorf," Georgina chuckled. "You want a fairy tale, and that's really very sweet, but you're not going to have that with Chuck," she shook her head.

"Look, G," she began, not willing to play into this ridiculous game. "A lot has changed since you left. Chuck and I are not together. I may unfortunately be carrying his spawn, but your taunting is getting us nowhere. It's tiresome and I'd like to go home."

"I'll tell you what we're going to do. You're going to get your phone out and text Chuck. You'll tell him to meet you here. When he arrives, then you can leave, and I'll leave you alone."

It sounded innocent enough, but that was precisely what worried her. She had no idea what Georgina was planning, but she'd already turned Serena into a raving mess, and Georgina still held the power in that relationship. Serena was desperate to keep Georgina quiet, and leaving Chuck here was just out of the question. She could use any of them against the other, and Chuck had already made it clear whose side he was on by rescuing Serena from Georgina's clutches before. Georgina wanted her to sell out Chuck to protect their secret, and that was precisely why she couldn't do that. If Georgina got what she wanted, she would continue her reign of terror over all of them. "No can do, G," she refused. "Send it."

"You're bluffing. We both know you would never be okay with that."

"Well clearly there's nothing I can do to stop you without betraying Chuck. You can't control us, Georgina. Whatever you have on Serena, you're done messing with her. You're done messing with all of us. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going home," she announced and stood up. She reached for her purse, desperately hoping Georgina would make some other offer, but the other girl remained silent.

Tears filled Blair's eyes as she began to walk towards the door. Stepping outside this room very likely meant the entire UES would learn her secret. But if the only way around that was betraying Chuck, she couldn't do anything to stop it. It might save her in the short-term, but the truth was, she _needed_ Chuck. She couldn't save herself by abandoning him. Georgina was crazy enough to do some real damage, and Chuck might never forgive her. She could have him here in ten minutes, but at what cost? She chose to have this baby, and in doing so, she committed herself to looking out for more than just one person. Throwing Chuck under the train wasn't an option, not if she wanted to raise this child with him, not if they were going to remain a team.

And maybe there was a little more than that, too. Maybe looking out for him was protecting herself as well. The truth was, she couldn't find it in herself to hurt him by handing him over to Georgina's clutches because she couldn't bear to be the cause of his pain. She cared about him, more than she understood, more than she wanted to accept. Having this baby was hard enough; falling in love with Chuck Bass was nearly unthinkable. But she was beginning to realise she may not have a choice, and there was simply no way she could allow Georgina to mess with his mind.

Her phone buzzed in her purse by the time she made it to the front of the hotel to hail a cab. She didn't take it out, already knowing what it would say. She directed to the driver to her penthouse, not sure how she could ever face Serena again, and then leaned her head against the cool glass window and allowed the tears to fall.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: My hopes of regular updating didn't work out so well! I started my big girl recently, so I'm swamped and trying to adjust to the new schedule! Writing time has not been all that abundant, but I'm really going to try to get back to updating this every week or at least every other week! Sorry for the long wait. And thanks, as always, for the reviews. You guys are awesome! Hope you enjoy the chapter!**

"Man, where's Blair?" Nate asked grumpily as he and Chuck sat awkwardly in Blair's bedroom. Serena finally finished vomiting and promptly fell asleep about thirty minutes ago, leaving them to carry her out of the bathroom and get her into the bed. She owed them big after this, and Chuck intended to collect.

"She said she was getting coffee," he answered, trying to sound calm even as he flipped open his cell phone once more to check for a message from her. She'd been gone almost an hour now, and her favourite coffee shop was barely three blocks from here. There was no reason for her to be gone this long, and if she'd had to go across town, why wouldn't she text him to let him know?

"Was she grinding it herself?" Nate grumbled, pulling out his own cell phone for lack of anything else to do. Serena was sleeping fitfully in Blair's bed, leaving them in strained silence with nothing else to keep them occupied.

"She didn't go for coffee, Nathaniel," he answered wryly. It shouldn't surprise him that his former best friend could be so dense, but it was so glaringly obvious that Blair had lied. No wonder their relationship had been a disaster; Nate couldn't read her at all.

"Then where did she go?"

"That would be the million dollar question."

"Does she really expect us to just sit here and watch Serena sleep off….whatever it is she's on?" Nate asked incredulously.

Chuck didn't answer, flipping open his cell phone once more as though it was possible that he missed it buzzing with a new text message. But there was nothing, of course, and still no sign of Blair. Something in his gut told him this was wrong, told him he had a right to be concerned about her disappearance. She'd been entirely too calm and cheerful when she zipped out of here in much too big a hurry to just need coffee. Besides, if Dorota was out decaf coffee, Blair would have sent her for it, not retrieved it for herself. Especially with Serena here ill and indisposed. He should have seen through it right away and stopped her, but he hadn't really had time to process what she was saying as she zoomed out of the room. He had a feeling Blair knew exactly what she was doing, and she knew he wouldn't be able to react in time to stop her.

"So you're just going to ignore me now?" Nate asked when Chuck said nothing.

"What would you like to talk about?"

"Nothing. Forget it," Nate shook his head. "I'm just going to go."

Chuck wasn't about to stop him, no matter how much he didn't want to be left alone here with Serena. Being alone with Nate wasn't much better, especially since they didn't speak anymore. This was the most he'd interacted with his former best friend since he broke the news about Blair's pregnancy, and it was going about as well as he expected it to. As Nate started to walk away, however, all three phones in the room began to buzz. Chuck anxiously flipped it open, his stomach sinking when he saw who it was from.

**Are you sitting down, UESers? We've finally uncovered the reason for the N and C fistfight, and is it ever juicy. It appears our pristine Queen B isn't quite so pure after all. Messing around with your boyfriend's best friend? Not too classy, B. Even better, it appears B is carrying her own little B. For Bass. You heard it here first. The Queen of Constance and the Devil of St. Jude's are procreating. Watch out, UES. This is going to get nasty. Oh wait, it already has.**

"Oh no," Nate blurted as soon as he read the blast.

Chuck remained stoic as he read the words again. The only people who knew about this were here in this room, except for one. And she wasn't about to tell anyone, so where was she?

He had one guess. And he had a feeling he wouldn't need another.

"Georgina," he said lowly. "She went to see Georgina."

"What?" Nate asked, obviously not following. "Why would she do that?"

"Take a guess," he answered wryly and looked pointedly to the girl beginning to stir in the bed.

"You think Serena…?"

"Who else? We're the only ones who know."

"Oh man. Blair's going to flip," Nate sighed.

"To put it mildly."

"What's going on?" Serena asked as she started to sit up, her face still smeared with her makeup and her hair a total mess. It was a tragic homage to days past, but back then they found this fun. Back then, he would have been amused by Serena's antics and probably would have encouraged her twisted idea of a good time. Somehow, the time for that had passed. In just a few weeks they'd become adults with adult problems and adult lives, and Serena's devil-may-care attitude and downward spiral were severely screwing with his life.

"What's going on?" he asked incredulously. "What's going on is that you _betrayed_ Blair!"

"What are you talking about? What am I doing here?" she asked in confusion as she wiped at her red-rimmed eyes.

"As usual, Blair insisted on cleaning up your mess. I _told _you to leave her out of it. You had ONE job! The only thing you had to do was keep her away from Blair and you're too stupid to even do that!" he shouted at her.

"Chuck!" Serena cried in hurt and indignation she had no right to feel at the moment. In fact, the only two people with any right to be upset were himself and Blair, but Blair was nowhere to be seen.

"Blair left an hour ago, and she hasn't come back. I swear to you, Serena, if Georgina even thinks about touching her, I'm going to-"

"Hey, hey," Nate interjected. "Let's all calm down. Yelling at each other isn't going to help anything. We need to find Blair right now."

"Find Blair?" Serena repeated, apparently still not following what was going on. "Where did she go? What does Georgina have to do with this?"

"You told her!" he roared. "You told her that Blair is pregnant! We just got the blast on Gossip Girl! Everyone knows because of you. Blair had a _plan_, Serena. She trusted you. For some reason she trusted you not to fuck up, but you just couldn't help yourself, could you? You have to ruin everything you touch!"

"Chuck!" Nate yelled. "Calm down. I'm sure it was an accident. Serena didn't mean to hurt Blair."

"Don't defend her," he snapped. "Do you have any idea what she's done? Do you have any idea what this is going to do to Blair?"

"Chuck, I wouldn't have done that," Serena tried to defend herself. "I swore to you and to Blair that I wouldn't tell anyone. I couldn't have."

"Oh really?" he challenged. "And just how much of last night do you remember?"

Serena's face fell, and she glanced down at the bed.

"Un-_fucking_-believable."

"I don't remember," she insisted again.

"Whose fault is that? I thought you were going to stay away from her."

"You don't understand," Serena cried weakly.

"Enlighten me," he said sarcastically. "What could possibly be so bad that you would do this to Blair to protect yourself?"

Before Serena could answer, the bedroom door opened and Blair finally walked in. To his great relief she appeared unharmed, but she still looked frail, exhausted, and miserable. She cast one glowering look at Serena, then looked to Chuck like he could somehow rescue her, like he could somehow make this better. But of course he couldn't. There was nothing he could say, nothing he could do. "She killed someone," Blair spoke as she took off her coat and threw it on the bed. "Isn't that right, S? That's what you told me last night? Shall I send that to Gossip Girl as well? Should I make sure that everyone knows your deepest secret? Or should I cut out the middle man and just go ahead and call Dan? Shall I go ahead and ruin your life the way you just ruined mine?"

"Blair," Serena whimpered in distress. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know…I don't even remember…"

"How could you do this to me?" Blair asked, shaking her head in disbelief. "I forgave for leaving without saying a word. I forgave you for sleeping with my boyfriend. I stood by you, through all of this. And no matter what you did, I would have been there for you."

"B, please," Serena begged desperately, unaware and uncaring that they had an audience. "I didn't know what I was doing. She slipped me something. She must have. She-"

"You knew, Serena! You knew that Georgina would wreck everything! You knew that you couldn't tell anyone! But you did it anyway. And now everyone knows. I was out all night last night looking for you, trying to make sure that you were safe, and the whole time…_the whole time_, you were betraying me."

"I'm so sorry, B," Serena cried miserably. "I'm sorry. Please, let me make it up to you. You're my best friend. I didn't mean to do this, I promise. It was a mistake!"

"The mistake was believing that you could ever keep anything to yourself, that you could ever just go about your life without insisting on ruining mine."

"Blair, please," Serena pleaded through her tears. "You _know_ I would never hurt you on purpose. It…it was an accident. Please, let me explain."

"No," she shook her head resolutely, though Chuck could hear the waver in her voice. "I'm done," she said simply. "I've been cleaning up your messes our whole lives, and every time I need you, you're not there. This time I needed you to be the one to help me, but you just couldn't do that, could you? You always have to be on top. Well congratulations, Serena, you win. You'll be queen again. I hope it's everything you wanted. Now please get out of my house."

There was a frightening resignation in her tone, a dull acceptance that her world was crashing down around her and all she could do was pretend to be in control. She was good at that, good at ordering people to do things when her life was in chaos, but he knew when Serena left, he would have a very broken Blair on his hands.

"Blair, please!" Serena begged in vain one last time. "You know that I would never do this to you on purpose."

"You heard her," Chuck said stonily before turning to Nate. "Get her out of here."

"Come on, Serena," Nate said, helping her out of the bed as she continued to cry and stumble over her own feet. Chuck followed them out, making sure they both left before he returned to Blair's bedroom to find her already curled up beneath the covers. Her shoes were laying by the bed, but she'd climbed in beneath the comforter still wearing all her clothes. He stood awkwardly by the door for a moment, not knowing whether he should go to her or just let her be. With the mood swings these days and her already temperamental feelings towards him, it might be a bad idea to disturb her right now. On the other hand, leaving her here alone probably wasn't a good choice either. Worst case scenario was suddenly her reality, and he had no idea what she might do.

After intense deliberation, he walked slowly into the room and sat down beside her. He just sat there in silence, trying to figure out what he was supposed to say, what he was supposed to do. Back when her father left, right after Serena disappeared and Nate suddenly started acting weird, he tried to be a good friend to her. They'd always shared a special, if somewhat dysfunctional friendship. She was his best friend's girl, but she was also the most devious and twisted person he knew (besides himself, of course). Their friendship had rarely gone beyond scheming, but for them, that was as intimate as it got. When he suddenly saw her coming to school pale and unhappy, he knew there was no one for her except him. So he tried to be a friend then, but his experience with friendship consisted mostly of getting drunk or high with Nate. He started spending more time with her, but most of their time together was spent drinking and plotting against people she hated.

Neither of those tried and true solutions was going to work now, and he was out of ideas.

"Do you know what she wanted?" Blair finally asked, her voice small and muffled by the comforter she was clutching so close.

"What who wanted?"

"Georgina. I went to her to talk her out of telling Gossip Girl. Do you know what she wanted?"

"The head of a small animal?" he couldn't help quipping. "Virgin blood?"

Blair didn't laugh. "You," she said simply, and it immediately chilled him to the bone. There was a darkness in Georgina greater than his own, a hole that could never be filled. Even he could be levelled by the drugs eventually, even he grew bored and moved on. Georgina was like a black hole, sucking everything in and still needing more. The destructive energy just built on itself, and if she wanted him, there was no telling what she had planned. "She told me she would keep it a secret if I would bring you to her."

"Then why didn't you?" he asked, thoroughly confused. There was nothing Blair wanted more than to keep her dignity through this. It would have been so easy to lure him there. A text from her and he would have been there, no questions asked.

"I couldn't," she shook her head. "I couldn't do that to you."

"Blair," he murmured, humbled by the loyalty he was fairly sure he hadn't earned.

"I would never betray you like that. You're…_you_, and I couldn't just betray you like that. So what is it about me? Why is it that everyone so easily abandons me?"

There was a lifetime of hurt in her tone, a lifetime of being ignored or criticised by her mother, the pain of losing her father, the hurt of discovering that the boy she saved herself for so easily gave himself up to her best friend. She sounded tiny and timid, not at all the fierce creature he'd come to know or the strong, determined girl willing to risk everything to have this baby. But that was always part of her intrigue. There was a dichotomy between the Blair Waldorf the world saw and the Blair Waldorf revealed behind closed doors. She was ice queen and broken child all at once, such hidden depths lurking beneath her flawless couture and polished appearance.

"Serena is a fool," he told her earnestly as he carefully laid down beside her. She didn't hit him or try to make him leave, so he moved a little closer and laid a hand on her arm. "You're so much better than her."

"And yet I'm going to be the social outcast."

"You could never be an outcast," he swore.

"Everyone loves her. Nate loves her, my own mother loves her more than me."

"Then they're fools, too," he insisted. "You've been there for her, over and over. If they can't see that, I pity them. But you are better than them, Blair. You're better than all of them."

"But I'm the one whose life is in ruins."

He didn't know what to say to that, and for the thousandth time, he wondered if they'd done the right thing choosing to keep this baby. He'd wanted it, for his own selfish reasons, to prove he was a bigger man than his father. He wanted Blair, so he pursued her recklessly with no regard to consequences. Even when their twisted affair first began, he thought little of being caught and much of maximising his own pleasure. The condom broke and he didn't notice, didn't take the time to worry or to care. He should have insisted, for her sake, that they get rid of the child. Now it was too late, and it was ruining her life. She made a mistake trusting him to be the one beside her; he could do nothing to fix this for her. The only consolation he could offer was that they would make Serena pay. She had to suffer for what she'd done. She swore to keep Blair out of this. He cleaned up her messes in exchange for one simple thing, and she hadn't held up her end of the bargain. "She won't get away with it, Blair. We'll make her pay," he promised.

"What's the point?" she asked bitterly. "It's done, Chuck. Don't you get it? Any chance I had to salvage anything is gone."

"Serena can't do this to you."

"She already has."

"Then we'll get revenge."

"I don't care anymore," she shook her head, and it frightened him that Blair Waldorf didn't want revenge. Revenge was one of her favourite things in the world. Nothing got her quite as giddy and excited as social destruction when she'd been wronged. Blair never took anything lying down. She was jut giving up now, letting Serena and Gossip Girl win. "Maybe I should go to France. I could stay with my father."

"You can't. You can't run away."

"Why not? It always works for you," she countered.

"Because Blair Waldorf does not surrender."

"Then we'll just call it a strategic retreat."

"You're going to back down because of Serena? Because of Georgina Sparks?" he asked with as much contempt as he could muster. If encouragement wouldn't work, he'd have to insult her out of it. "I never thought you were weak. Is that what you're going to tell our kid when it's born?"

"Please, Chuck. This kid is going to have bigger problems that that."

"What happened to us doing things right?"

"I was an idiot for thinking that we could. Georgina was right, Chuck. Your interest will fade, and then what? You'll be gone and it will just be me. I still have the urge to throw up everything I eat when I'm supposed to be eating for two. What kind of mother will I be?"

"Not much of one, apparently," he shot back. That silenced her for a moment, but then he felt her begin to shake a little with tears. He cursed himself for being such an asshole, but what else could he do? He was an insensitive prick to Blair on a good day, and now her moods and feelings were even more impossible to predict. Deciding to keep his mouth shut this time, he reached up to comb out her tangled curls. As her words played back in his mind, he couldn't help thinking about what Georgina must have said about him. No doubt she tried to convince Blair he would leave her just like everyone else in her life. And maybe it was true, maybe he really wasn't going to be able to do this. He always grew bored and moved on, and he couldn't count on himself to make the right decisions. But he was here, right now, against every instinct he'd ever had. He was drinking less, some days not at all, and that was something he hadn't done since he was fourteen. Blair hadn't even let him kiss her since they found out she was pregnant, but she was the only girl he'd touched in that whole time. He was changing, and maybe it wouldn't last, but it was all he had to go on. Right now he could do it, right now he could stay. He might fuck everything up, but at least he was here instead of drinking in some dark corner in some dark bar on the other side of the world. The idea that Georgina Sparks might be right about him…that was enough to scare anyone straight.

When it became obvious Blair wasn't going to speak to him, he sighed and climbed out of the bed. She refused to look at him, turning over to her other side and pulling the blanket up over her head. He would let her hide – for now, but she probably needed to eat something, and he probably shouldn't leave her alone right now. He retreated downstairs to search for Dorota and found her pacing anxiously in the kitchen.

"Mister Chuck," she acknowledged him. "I get Gossip Girl blast. Is Miss Blair okay?"

He frowned a little at the news that even Blair's maid was subscribed to Gossip Girl, but perhaps it wasn't all that shocking. Blair did rely on Dorota for just about everything. "She needs to eat," he answered simply.

"I bring you both food. You go sit with Miss Blair," she shooed him away. At least there was one person in the house looking out for her, since Eleanor hadn't made in appearance in quite some time. He returned upstairs to find Blair still curled up tightly beneath the blankets.

"Go away," she grumbled at him.

"Dorota's fixing breakfast. You know how I love her nalesniki."

"I'm _not_ eating breakfast with you," she refused stubbornly. "And Dorota knows I don't eat pancakes."

"They're not for you, Waldorf," he teased. "They're for the baby."

"Chuck, just get out," she demanded. "I'm not in the mood for this...or you."

"You wound me, Blair," he responded flatly. If she thought she was going to get rid of him so easily, she had another thing coming. He could be just as stubborn as she could, and he was hardly going to leave her here alone after everything that happened in the last few hours. Instead, he sat down on the bed again and pulled the blanket away from her face. She turned over and scowled at him, but he just ignored her.

They sat in silence for a while, Blair pretending to sleep while he flipped listlessly through a book on her nightstand. Dorota arrived after twenty minutes or so, carrying a large tray with a variety of food and two glasses of juice. He would have preferred some vodka in his, but he was already pushing it sitting on the bed in front of her strict Polish maid.

"You eat, Miss Blair," Dorota insisted. "Baby must be hungry."

"Traitor," Blair accused as she reluctantly sat up. Dorota left the tray and scurried away, Blair's glare following her out.

Without bothering to ask what she wanted, Chuck fixed a plate for her with fruit, yogurt, and plenty of Dorota's pancakes. "Don't tell me you're not eating it," he told her sternly as he handed it to her.

"Why are you doing this, Chuck? Can't you just leave me alone?"

"When have I ever done that?"

"Now's a good time to start," she shot back.

"I'm glad to see your grief hasn't dulled your sparkling personality," he drawled. "So what is it going to be today? _Tiffany's_ or _Roman Holiday_?"

"I was thinking _War and Peace_."

"It's three and a half hours."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Am I keeping you from something important?" she retorted.

"Waldorf, what could be more important than spending the day watching old Hepburn movies with you?" he asked sarcastically. She just rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to her plate. She picked a little at the food and took an extraordinarily long time to eat it, but she did finish most of the plate before setting it aside. Satisfied, he followed her to the entertainment room and let her set up the movie. They'd been forced to watch the movie one time at school, but he was fairly certain he and Nate had skipped the second half of the day and smoked instead. Of course Blair had seen it more than once and loved it, so he would just keep his mouth shut.

"What am I going to do?" she asked suddenly an hour into the movie.

"What do you mean?"

She kept her eyes riveted on the screen, but he could tell she was no longer paying attention to Audrey and Henry. "How am I going to go back to school?"

He'd been dreading the question, and he really had no answer for her. "The better question is how Serena's going to go back to school when everyone learns her secret."

"I'm serious, Chuck," she insisted. "I don't even care about getting revenge. I

care about the fact that if I go to school on Monday, everyone is going to hate me. They'll pity me."

"Do you really think you're the first girl at Constance to get pregnant? I'm sure I could have a list for you by Monday of all the girls who've had the problem…taken care of."

"I'll be the first one to admit it. The first one to go to school getting bigger by the day."

"I'm pretty sure Ashley Henstridge does, too."

"Chuck!" she cried, picking up one of the remote controls and launching it at him, hitting him square in the chest.

"Look, I can't tell you what to do," he told her honestly. "And I can't tell you that it's going to be easy. But you didn't become Queen by being afraid to do the difficult thing. You're Queen because you're better than them, and you're the only one brave enough to do this."

He heard her sniffle a few times, and then she moved closer to him and allowed her head to rest on his shoulder. It was one of the first times Blair had been openly affectionate with him since all this happened, and he stiffened at first, surprised by the contact she actually initiated herself. After a moment, however, he smoothed down her hair and pressed his lips to the top of her head, breathing in her scent. She always smelled faintly of coconut and her Dior perfume, an intoxicating mix that was so uniquely her. She always managed to smell good, even after everything she'd been through today, and he thought absently it was how a mother should be. He remembered having a nanny once, when he was very young, who always wore Coco. He remembered the way the scent lingered in the house, even when she wasn't there, and he remembered the way her clothes would smell of it when she hugged him close. He could no longer recall her name, but anytime he smelled that perfume, he thought of her and how safe she made him feel.

She shifted again until she was laying in his arms, her head on his chest and his hands resting lightly on her sides. She usually covered up her baby bump, so he took advantage of the current position to place his hand on top of the tiny swell. "Does it kick?" he asked curiously.

"No," she laughed at him. "It's too early, Chuck. I'm only 14 weeks."

"I figured our kid would be ahead of the curve."

"Maybe in a few weeks. My clothes are already getting too tight," she frowned. "I'm going to be massive."

"Keep talking like that, and I'm dragging you to a therapist myself," he warned her. "Should I call now?"

She didn't answer, but he knew what that meant. Blair was terrible at asking for help, and if she was offended or put out by his suggestion, she would let him know. Her silence told him all he needed to know.

"I'll set something up," he told her. "Right now I can think of some better therapy."

"Chuck," she rolled her eyes. "Just because I'm already pregnant doesn't mean I'm going to have sex with you every time your twisted little mind desires."

"If we had sex every time I desired, we'd never stop," he grinned down at her, earning him a smack to the arm. "It's interesting that your mind immediately immediately jumps to sex when I didn't even bring it up. You know you want me, Waldorf. It's only a matter of time."

"I thought you _didn't_ want me to throw up. Why do you insist on nauseating me?"

"You protest too much, kitten. But we'll get to that in time. Right now, I was thinking about Georgina and how we're going to eliminate her. I know nothing makes you happier than a well-planned and well-executed takedown."

Blair shrugged, feigning innocence even as the smile started to creep over her face at the thought. _This_ was exactly why they were perfect together, and it was exactly why their child would be a force to be reckoned with. "I suppose we do need to get rid of her," she agreed casually. "What did you have in mind?"

Chuck grinned slyly and tucked a piece of hair behind Blair's ear. "What do you know about Georgina's parents?"


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: I'm sure the apologies for not updating sooner are getting old. Suffice it to say, my job is keeping me really busy! I've also had a tough time with this chapter and the next. I never could quite get them right, so my apologies if they're a little slow and stiff. The story is going to pick up about two chapters from now, so stick with it! I have a lot written in advance, so it REALLY shouldn't take so long next time! I think I'm over the worst of the writer's block. I wish I could take the time to thank everyone personally for reviewing, but if I did that, I'd never get ANY writing done. But don't think it means I appreciate it any less. You are all amazing and thank you so much for reading my story! I hope you enjoy! **

On Monday morning, Blair tried to feign terrible illness. First she cited morning sickness, but Dorota was having none of that. She knew that Blair's nausea ended at the end of the first trimester, so obviously that wasn't going to be an option. She halfheartedly rooted through her closet, then started to cough and then decided perhaps she was getting a cold. Dorota just gave her a look, and Blair knew she wasn't getting off that easy.

There was really no point in hiding her ever-expanding stomach now, but something about showing up at Constance looking the part of the poor knocked-up princess seemed like too much to bear. She picked out one of her few skirts that still seemed to fit okay and slid it on, grimacing at the reflection in the mirror. The skirt still buttoned, but it also did little to conceal the bump. She grabbed a loose ruffled blouse and nearly cried as she struggled to button it, but a red scarf would cover her chest as well as distract people from the baby bump. At Dorota's insistence, she perfected her hair and makeup and reluctantly ate a muffin and fruit before heading out the door.

"Waldorf," a familiar voice greeted as soon as she stepped aside. She looked up sharply and discovered Chuck waiting for her, leaning against the side of his limo and looking decidedly calm about everything. "Looking ravishing, as usual."

"Don't start with me. Not today."

"I'm not starting anything," he assured her innocently and opened the door to the limo. "We'll arrive together. Put up a united front today."

"A united front," she repeated incredulously. "You're going to be too busy getting high fives for nailing your best friend's girlfriend to put up a united front."

"I'm trying here, Blair. I don't know what else to do. Now will you please get in?"

She huffed in irritation and climbed into the limo, hating him just a little for showing up here and keeping her from taking a little detour on her way to school. As usual, however, her irritation quickly began to evaporate, replaced by a wash of sadness and fear. The ever-changing moods and the frequent urge to cry was just another symptom of this horribly timed pregnancy, and she clenched her eyes shut to try to hide the tears from him.

But Chuck never missed a beat. Not when it came to her. Nate could be – and had been – oblivious to everything, from the way she disappeared into the bathroom right after meals to the way she pinched herself between her thumb and pointer finger to keep from crying.

"You're crying," he observed.

"No, I'm not."

"Blair."

"It doesn't matter. Will you leave me alone?" she snapped harshly.

He sighed in irritation, but his silence lasted only a moment. "If you can't go to school without having a meltdown, we'll skip," he proposed. "If they're going to bother you too much…"

"What's the point, Chuck?" she asked miserably. "I have to face them sometime!"

"You could get tutors for the rest of the year."

"And let them win? No, that's not an option," she shook her head. "I just have to get through this. I will not meltdown," she insisted, more to convince herself than him. "If they see me falter, they win."

"That's the spirit," he grinned at her. She just rolled her eyes and looked out the window again, but when she felt his hand pick up hers and squeeze, she couldn't help smiling just a little.

Five minutes later, they pulled up to school and dropped hands. Chuck got out first, but he waited for her so they could walk in together. She instantly noticed the sudden silence as they approached school, and tears once more burned her eyes even as she tried to keep her head held high. Everyone leaned in and began to whisper, and she could just imagine all the horrible things they were saying about her. When she spotted her minions, they all gave her looks of absolute disgust. Penelope looked particularly satisfied, shooting her a devilish glare. "Pregnant little hypocrite," she bit out.

Blair wanted to just keep walking and ignore the awful words, but Chuck instantly stopped and turned to Penelope. "Penelope, how nice to see you," he began with obviously feigned levity. "How is that boyfriend of yours doing?"

Penelope just looked a little surprised, and she and Hazel shared confused glances. "What are you talking about?"

"What is his name again? It just slipped my mind for a moment. Oh, but you know, I have your dad on speed dial. We could just call and ask him," Chuck continued. Blair had no idea where he was going with this, but Penelope suddenly blanched. "He does work with your father, right?" Chuck reached for his phone and flipped it open, beginning to scroll through his numbers.

"That won't be necessary," Penelope attempted to stop him. "You've made your point."

"Have I? Let's make it a little more clear. Make another comment about my girlfriend…to _anyone_…and your dad gets the photographic evidence of your little association."

"We're clear."

"Nice talking to you."

With that, Chuck lightly took her arm and steered her away from the group of mean girls. She didn't know whether she should be flattered and grateful that he was so determined to make this easier for her or if she should just be offended and irritated that he felt the need to intercede on her behalf. And then there was that little word he just tossed out so carelessly…_girlfriend. _Since when? "Going to fight all my battles for me, Bass?" she accused after a moment.

"If you want to do this alone, feel free," he bit back, abruptly dropping her arm and picking up his pace a little. She bit her lip, feeling just slightly guilty for attacking him when, really, he was being far more supportive than she ever suspected Chuck Bass could be.

She quickened her steps to catch up with him again, not entirely sure she wanted to walk into the building alone. "You called me your girlfriend."

"Don't worry. You don't have to give me a pin," he responded sarcastically. "Just thought it might help the situation. Want to yell at me about that, too?"

"Chuck…" she began.

"School is about to start. You going to be okay, Waldorf?"

"No," she laughed humourlessly. "Guess I don't have a choice, though."

"Text if you need anything," he offered. "You're better than them, Blair."

She forced herself to smile, and then, on impulse, she leaned forward and kissed him lightly on the lips. "Have lunch with me?"

"I'll meet you here. Good luck."

With that, they were forced to separate. Blair took a deep breath and headed to her side of the building, ignoring the blatant stares and forging ahead towards her locker. Unsurprisingly, a familiar blonde was waiting for her, looking disheveled and a little worse for wear. Her hair was more unkempt than usual, her eyes dark as though she hadn't slept, and her usual sunny smile noticeably absent. Any other time, Blair might be concerned and rush to her former best friend's aid. But Serena was the one who threw her under the bus, and it was an unforgiveable offense. "What do you want?" she asked sharply, refusing to make eye contact as she pulled out her book for her first class.

"To talk. B, I am so-"

"Serena, I understand that the massive quantities of drugs and alcohol you have recently consumed have most likely killed whatever brain cells were left, but I have no desire to speak to you. How can I make that more clear to you? Please tell me so I can move on with my life without having you here to ruin it for me."

"Please," Serena whimpered. "Don't be like this."

"You don't get to ask for favours anymore."

"Dan broke up with me," she blurted.

"Well then, he's smarter than I thought. If I wasn't afraid of contracting rabies, I'd go congratulate him."

"Everything is such a mess," the blonde continued as tears started to leak from huge blue eyes. "I just need my best friend. Please, B. I know what I did was unforgiveable, but-"

"It was unforgiveable. I can never trust you again. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go face a room full of people who will mock and ridicule me." She slammed her locker shut for emphasis and stalked away, disappointed to find that the usual rush of victory was fleeting and entirely unsatisfying even though she clearly bettered Serena. It was hard to feel too much pride when everyone was looking at her like she contracted some kind of highly contagious disease.

The next four hours were mostly awful, sprinkled with a few random moments of truly unbearable. Apparently Chuck's threats hadn't fully been carried throughout the school yet, so a few brave girls still dared to openly taunt her. It was all too easy to give into tears with the raging pregnancy hormones at the moment, but she forced herself to show no signs of weakness and deflected all their comments with her own well-placed barbs. In third period, she had the misfortune of sharing class with Serena, and since they had assigned seating, she was forced to sit down next to her.

"Hey B," one of the wannabe mean girls smiled wickedly as she took her seat in front of Blair. Blair had been particularly harsh when excluding her from the inner circle, so she knew the fallout would not be pleasant. "It's too bad Marc Jacobs doesn't do a maternity line. That skirt doesn't look like it can take much more."

Before Blair could respond, Serena sat down in her seat and glared at the girl. "I just love your sweater, Ainsley," she gushed. "Where did you get it? The Gap? It would be perfect for my mother's clothing drive."

Ainsley got the hint and turned around, thoroughly rebuked. "Do you really think that's all it's going to take?" Blair hissed as she opened her textbook. "You're a real hero, Serena."

"I'm not trying to-"

"Let's just remember whose fault it is the whole school knows. And don't think that just because you're safe for the moment that you're going to remain that way. Chuck and I are focusing on Georgina right now, but you're next."

The teacher took her place at the front of the room and began to lecture, and Blair chalked up another point for herself. Blair – 2, Serena – 0. It was the small comforts in life that were going to get her through the remainder of this terrible school year. She tried in vain to focus on the literature lesson, carefully taking notes in perfect handwriting, but when she felt her cell phone buzz, she was more than ready for the distraction.

**Doing okay? **the text from Chuck read.

Something in her stomach flipped over, and she frowned a little at the odd reaction. _It's just the baby, _she tried to tell herself as she responded. **Fine. U?**

She expected a perfunctory answer and turned back to her note-taking. He took longer than expected to text back, and when he did, she nearly choked. **Thinking about that night. U came twice.**

Her cheeks flushed bright red and she coughed just a little, then covered her mouth and tried to pretend it was nothing as she scribbled a little harder on the paper. Leave it to Chuck to start taunting her with their sex life on the first day at school since the news broke. And how the hell did he know just how deprived she was right now? The first twelve weeks she didn't even want to think about him touching her, but since the morning sickness faded and the second trimester began, the desire was overwhelming. She'd been able to keep it in check, but she'd never be able to control herself with him reminding her just how perfect he was in bed and how he knew exactly what to do to drive her wild. **I forget**, she texted back, hoping that would put him in his place.

But she should have known better. Chuck was not to be deterred. **I'll remind you. Lunch. Limo. Ur fav.**

The heat rose to her cheeks once more as she recalled her first time. Any thoughts of focusing on British literature vanished, and she decided she needed to focus on not going crazy for the next hour. Her phone didn't buzz again after that, but Chuck probably knew exactly how much she was squirming right now and enjoying every second of his torture. They hadn't shared so much as a kiss since they found out she was pregnant, but in about an hour, she planned to change that.

By lunch, she was desperately craving a pizza and an escape. It could have been worse, she supposed, but the way everyone was looking at her, she felt like an outsider for the first time in her life. She'd always been on the top, and now suddenly everyone was looking down on her, on her dirty little secret, on the scandal she could never keep contained. The girls hadn't formally announced her dethroning, but it was obvious none of them intended to speak to her again, much less follow her commands or allow her to lead the group. Maybe she should be putting up a fight and trying to remind them who she was, baby or no baby, but at the moment, she wasn't sure she would be able to handle the humiliation of defeat.

The limo sat obtrusively right outside the school, so Blair opened the door and slipped in to wait for Chuck. To her surprise, he was already there waiting for her. "Good afternoon, Beautiful," he grinned. "I take it you're surviving? Anyone else I need to threaten? I took the liberty of having my PI look into some of the most likely offenders."

"Serena tried to come to my rescue from Ainsley Cunningham," she rolled her eyes.

"I'm not sure which half of that sentence bothers me more," he darkened a little. "Ainsley Cunningham? Her knockoffs aren't even in season."

"I don't want to talk about Ainsley. Or Serena."

"Do you want to talk about lunch? I need to tell Arthur where to take us."

"Pizza," she demanded, suddenly feeling an overwhelming urge for a hot, greasy piece of pizza with sinful amounts of cheese and practically dripping with sauce. She couldn't even remember the last time she ate a pizza, the fat alone enough to keep her away since she first found out about things like calories and carbs, but the further along she got, the more she started feeling these weird cravings for foods she hadn't eaten since elementary school.

"Blair Waldorf eats pizza?" he couldn't hide his shock.

"Apparently your child does," she snapped.

He just smirked back at her and leaned forward to tell Arthur where they were going. When he sat back, Blair found herself oddly disappointed that he was seated so far away from her and making no attempts to get closer. Other than a few lewd comments and the occasional sweet gesture like holding her hand when she was upset, Chuck had done very little to indicate he was still interested in her. His remarks about her chest were expected and nothing out of the ordinary…nothing that suggested he wanted to _date_ her. His text at least convinced her he still wanted her, but now he wasn't making a move even in the back of the limo where he first took her virginity.

A wave of horror washed over her as she realised maybe he _didn't_ want her at all. Maybe he really was just trying to help her out when he called her his girlfriend this morning. And maybe the dirty text and the commentary on her appearance were just Chuck being Chuck, not Chuck expressing his interest in her and her alone. And really, what was she expecting? He already acted against character by being sweet and supportive through all of this, by stepping up and taking responsibility for her and the baby. Could she really expect him to commit to anything else? Could she really expect him to even what anything else? Chuck was not a one-woman man. He never had been, and he probably never would be. He wasn't even _trying_ to touch her now, when he had the perfect opportunity away from prying eyes. But Chuck had always had his pick of women, from supermodels to shy virgins; why would he want her when her skirt could barely button and maternity clothes were in her very near future.

"You feeling okay, Waldorf?" he asked, apparently noticing the strained silence.

"Fine," she snapped a little too harshly.

"You sound it."

She said nothing, not trusting herself to speak without blurting out everything she was thinking and making even more of a mess.

"Blair?" he pressed.

When he looked at her with those eyes, there was little she could do to resist him. "Did you mean what you said?"

"What are you talking about?" he asked in confusion.

"You called me your girlfriend. Did you mean that?" she asked a little more forcefully.

"Everyone knows we're having a baby," he shrugged. "We might as well let them believe we're together."

"Oh," she managed, her heart dropping a little. "But you don't…want to be together?"

"That's not what I said," he answered carefully and turned to face her once more. "I think I've made it clear that I'm committed to this."

"Yes, to being a father. What about to me?" she inquired. "Do you even want anything to do with me, or are you just revolted by me now?"

"Revolted?" he asked incredulously.

"I'm getting fat! Even Ainsley could tell my clothes barely fit me!"

Without notice or chance to prepare herself, Chuck scooted over and took her in his arms, pressing his lips to hers and pulling her against him. She instantly yielded to his touch, her body curling to his just as it had done months ago in this exact same limo in this exact same seat. She moaned a little into his mouth, just now realising how much she missed being touched like this. His hands deftly cradled her, sliding up her ribcage and gently cupping her breast. Making out with Chuck was such a sensory overload, from the way his tongue played with hers to the way his fingers always knew exactly where to linger. When they parted for air, more of a formality than anything, his eyes were dark with lust and she wanted him far more than any pizza. "You look incredible, Blair," he murmured breathily.

"Then why don't you want to be with me?" she asked, hating herself for sounding so weak and needy.

"I called you my girlfriend for a reason. I thought you knew by now what I wanted."

"That's not how it works, Chuck!" she protested.

"How what works?"

"You're such an idiot," she shook her head.

"Explain it to me then, Waldorf. I'm a little new at this," he reminded her wryly.

"You don't just go around and tell people I'm your girlfriend without even asking me first!"

"I apologise," he responded, his voice dripping with insincerity as he reached over to take her hand. He raised it to his lips and brushed a kiss over her knuckles. "Blair, will you be my girlfriend?"

"Now you're just mocking me," she ripped her hand away from him.

"No, I'm asking you if you _want_ to be my girlfriend. You do or you don't. It's not difficult."

"That isn't how you ask!" she cried in frustration. "God, Chuck, don't you know anything? You're supposed to ask me out first, take me somewhere nice, and then ask me if I want to be your girlfriend."

"I already knocked you up," he smirked. "I think we're past the formalities."

"Just because I'm already pregnant doesn't mean you get to fast forward into the relationship before you even take me on a first date. What, you think because I'm already ruined I'm no longer worth making the effort?"

"Blair," he groaned. "Don't put words in my mouth."

"Then don't treat me like one of your sluts," she snapped. "I'm carrying your kid at the expense of my social life, my _body_, and my future. You won't make me a fool on top of it. If you want to be my boyfriend, I insist on a real date, Chuck."

"Do you really think I'm treating you like I've treated anyone else?" he asked incredulously. "I've never slept with the same person twice. I've never laid in bed with a girl to _watch movies_. I've never even held hands."

"Be that as it may, it doesn't count. Dinner, Bass," she clarified. "You have to take me out somewhere. In public. Someplace expensive. I can't believe I even have to explain this to you."

"Calm down, Waldorf. I never said we wouldn't have a first date. If that's what you want, we'll do it," he assured her.

"Yes, now that I've forced you I'm sure it will be incredibly romantic. You really know how to make a girl feel special, Chuck. Shall I pay as well? Would you like me to plan the evening? Send a car to get you? You know, why don't we just skip the date and go right to the sex. That should just make it even more wonderful for me."

"Are you done?" he asked in amusement.

"That depends. Are you done humiliating me?"

"Blair," he sighed. "We did go a little backwards. You'll have to forgive me for not knowing exactly what I'm supposed to do."

"You may have a point," she conceded. "But that doesn't excuse you from going through the steps of being in a relationship."

"Oh, I think you've made that abundantly clear, Princess," he answered wryly.

"Friday night, then?"

"If you want me to plan the evening, you don't get to pick the day," he shook his head. "I'll let you know when we're having our first date and the proper attire."

"It's just dinner."

"I don't do just dinner, Waldorf," he advised her. "Prepare to be swept off your feet."

"I'll believe that when I see it," she shot back.

"You have no idea what you're in for," he smirked, apparently very pleased with himself.

"Oh, and speaking of, how is your PI doing with the information on Georgina?"

"Nothing says romance like plotting utter annhiliation."

"Maybe you're smarter than I thought you were."

Chuck returned Blair to school after lunch, still watching in concern as she struggled to hold her head high as mocking stares followed her inside. She was handling it better than anyone could have hoped, but he knew that beneath the perfectly constructed façade was a miserable, terrified girl. Few people knew it, but he was one of a small circle who had been privy to the innermost tortures of Blair Waldorf. When Serena disappeared and Nate, for all intents and purposes, went off the radar, he'd been particularly present for the breakdowns. Her father left, her best friend left, her boyfriend was off on another planet completely, and it had been his job to hold the pieces of her together. So he knew that she was not nearly as okay as she appeared, but he didn't know what to do about it. He couldn't fix it, and he could threaten everyone in the school, but it wasn't going to give her back the life she knew before this baby came along.

Focusing on Blair allowed him to force his own tortured thoughts aside. For a few weeks now he'd barely had to think about his own feelings on the matter. Every time he did recall the reality of his life, the future fast approaching, he nearly broke out into a cold sweat. Chuck Bass didn't do girlfriends and babies and nurturing, but he'd been catapulted into this life where his pseudo-girlfriend was pregnant and he didn't want to lose her or force her to endure it alone, but he was downright terrified about what was soon going to happen. When he couldn't sleep at night he would look a few things up, try to understand babies and pregnancy and all the things a father-to-be was supposed to do, but it made it all-too-real for him. Reading about how his baby was growing was surreal, and as amazed as he was by that little bump she sometimes let him touch, he wasn't sure when – if ever – he'd get to the point that he wanted to meet the little person soon to become his. He knew he didn't want to kill it, and he knew he wanted it to know a dad, but that was the extent of it. He cared, and for now, he figured that was enough. What more could anyone expect of him anyway? For now, he would focus on Blair. Maybe the baby part would come later. Maybe when it got a little closer he'd be able to process what was about to happen to him.

They both survived Monday, and by Tuesday, they had a plan in place to get rid of Georgina for good. On Wednesday, Lily called and requested his presence at dinner, so he reluctantly cleaned himself up and headed to the penthouse. "Chuck," his future stepsister greeted as soon as he crossed the threshold.

"I have less to say to you than she does," he warned her. "At least Blair cares enough to insult you."

"I _know_ what I did to her. To you. But I'm paying for it, Chuck!"

"You think because your Brooklyn trash dumped you it makes us even? While I wouldn't go advertising that not even _Humphrey_ wants you now, I think you'll move on just fine. Maybe you can find someone else's boyfriend to sleep with….speed the process along."

"Charles? Is that you?" Lily called, interrupting their little spat. She stepped into the foyer to greet him, then stopped, startled by the sight of Serena's tears. "Serena?" she asked in concern. "What's going on?"

"Nothing, Mom," she was quick to answer. Lily didn't look convinced, but Serena insisted once more, then stormed away, leaving them both standing there in the entryway.

"Charles," Lily sighed, stepping forward to lightly embrace him. "You didn't bring Blair with you tonight?"

"I thought it would be best for her not to come tonight," he answered diplomatically, then realised that he could at least stick it to Serena a little tonight by getting Lily involved. "She and Serena are on the outs again."

"Those girls," she laughed in bemusement. "They've been doing this since kindergarten."

"I'm afraid this time it may be a little more serious than their other…disagreements."

"Oh?" Lily raised an eyebrow in concern.

"It's not really my place," he feigned innocence. "I don't want to get between them. Now that Serena and I are going to be family…" he added for a little extra impact.

"You're worrying me, Charles. What happened between Serena and Blair? I seriously doubt my daughter is going to tell me."

He pretended to wrestle with it for a long moment before opening his mouth again. "I think you should ask Serena how the school found out that Blair was pregnant."


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: First of all, I am SO sorry for the delay. I got dreadfully sick and have been dealing with that, and I also went on vacation and didn't find much time to write. Special thanks to BrittyKay247 for encouraging me to get to this already! I want to address one thing quickly...in reviews some people have mentioned scenes they are looking forward to, and I just want to apologize if those scenes don't necessarily appear. Most of my chapters are written several chapters in advance, so by the time I read reviews, the chapter is written. I always take into consideration adding certain material, but I have a timeline to follow to get to the main point of my story, so ultimately, it doesn't always work. I hope no one will be too terribly disappointed! Thank you to everyone who reads and reviews. It means so much to me! **

_So I'm trying to put it right_

_Cause I want to love you with my heart_

_All this trying has made me tight_

_And I don't know even where to start._

_Maybe that's a start. _

- Alexi Murdoch, "Song for You"

Surviving Monday didn't make getting up and getting ready any easier on Tuesday. Dorota had made sure a few of her skirts were tailored to fit her better, but feeling huge and disgusting didn't really help Blair in getting ready. She tried accessorising to the best of her ability, attempting to still look polished and put-together while hiding as much of her baby bump as possible, but even with a complete outfit, she could tell how different she was starting to look.

Through the remainder of the week, Serena attempted to speak to her at school or catch up with her as she left for the afternoon with Chuck. In the old days, she might have felt just a little sympathy at the mournful expressions her ex-best friend cast every time Dan Humphrey popped up somewhere, but Blair found herself admiring him just a little for having the guts to stand up to his goddess after she wronged him. She decided to take a page from his book and completely ignore the blonde, even after their history. Chuck seemed content to do the same, and Blair found some relief in watching her former friend suffer for her crimes.

She missed her, though. At lunch, Serena took off for the Met steps and Blair was left alone. Chuck always came to meet her, whisking her away for a nice lunch somewhere to save her from the pitying looks of her fellow classmates as she entered the courtyard, but it wasn't the same. For the first time, she felt so completely alone. No one had the courage to officially dethrone her now that Chuck had made it clear anyone who did so would suffer immensely, but her former minions barely even looked at her. She was forced to take solace with Chuck, and she did enjoy eating with him, enjoyed their scheming sessions throughout meals as the planned their revenge on Georgina, but she wanted friends again. She wanted to go to school without feeling like an outcast, a pariah.

On Friday morning, she was half-heartedly considering playing sick when her phone buzzed. **Date tomorrow AM. Dress comfortably. – C. **It was enough of a mystery to get her out of bed, and she once more reluctantly dressed and met him at the limo for their usual ride to school.

To celebrate surviving a full week with the news out in the open, they had both planned a little something special…the kind of celebration only Chuck and Blair could enjoy. Blair couldn't even begin to express the delight at the look on Georgina's face when she saw her parents approaching, and though it did little to ease the hurt of Serena's betrayal and her subsequent social ruining, there was nothing like a well-planned scheme and wonderfully deserved revenge to put her in a better mood. With Georgina shipped off to boot camp somewhere, hopefully never to be heard from again, Blair could turn her attention to the date tomorrow. Now that she had absolutely nowhere to be on a Friday night, she spent the evening forcing Dorota to help her sort through the closet and find something at least slightly acceptable. Thankfully her dresses still mostly fit, so she chose a simple Marc Jacobs shift dress and a pair of flats. She was definitely beginning to look more and more pregnant, and as she modeled in the mirror, she couldn't help staring at the baby bump taking over her once trim midsection. "You look beautiful, Miss Blair," Dorota praised. "Baby make you glow."

"Baby makes me fat," she protested, slipping out of the dress and turning around so she wouldn't have to see the full impact of her growing belly. She slipped into her nightgown and robe, nearly shedding a tear as she realised it was only eight o'clock and she had nowhere to be.

Her phone remained silent all night, not a single text or phone call demanding her attention or her presence at any soirees tonight. So she curled up in her bed and watched bad television, allowing herself to indulge in the delicious meal Dorota made and trying to look forward to tomorrow instead of dreading the rest of high school. Just as she started to drift off around ten, her phone buzzed with the first text in hours. It was Chuck, of course, but as long as one person still wanted to talk to her, she'd take it.

**Looking forward to tomorrow. Pick u up at 10.**

She couldn't help smiling just a little, her stomach fluttering with excitement at the thought of her first date with Chuck. As much as she hated to admit it, he'd been the perfect gentleman the last few weeks, and she was starting to think even Chuck Bass could change, given sufficient motivation. He'd made the earnest effort to be here for her, and when she needed him most this week, he'd been at her side every time. **Can't wait**, she texted back.

It was ten o'clock on a Friday and she was home alone, but Blair still went to sleep without a tear shed.

"What are we doing?" she asked curiously the next morning as Chuck took her hand and guided her out to the limo. A grin was dancing on his face, making him look adorably boyish in his excitement. She could tell he was proud of himself for whatever he planned for today, and she had a feeling no matter what it was, she would love it just because he was so thrilled. It was a new side to him, a new facet in this person she was constantly rediscovering, this person who showed himself only to her. That alone made her feel special and wanted, like maybe her life wouldn't be a catastrophe after all.

"We're doing many things today, Waldorf," he informed her. "I hope you kept your schedule clear all day."

"Now that I've become the laughingstock of Constance, my calendar is completely clear."

"Rule number one for today is going to be no talk about school. Let's go ahead and add Serena and Georgina to that as well."

"Only if you tell me what we're doing."

"We're doing things we've never done before," he beamed as he opened the door to the limo for her. "A whole day of new things, like-"

"Like _Breakfast at Tiffany's_," she finished for him. "I'm impressed, Bass. You've been paying attention."

"Always was," he grinned, causing her heart to flip-flop just a little. He was, wasn't he? All those years when she was with Nate, he'd always been there, lurking in the background, the shadow of his best friend, the shadow of her boyfriend. All those anniversaries and birthdays, it was Chuck who dropped casual reminders, Chuck who made sure it didn't all fall apart. The revelation was both terrifying and terribly, terribly romantic.

"Please tell me we're not stealing anything. A criminal record on top of a teenage pregnancy is a little too MTV," she quipped, trying to push away the deeper thoughts for now.

"No criminal activity involved," he assured her. "We're starting with me. I've never been with you to feed the ducks."

"How do you even know about that?" she gaped. It had been sacred tradition every weekend to feed the ducks in Central Park with Dorota, but she never took anyone along with her, even Nate.

"Please. I've known you since kindergarten, Blair." He leaned over to kiss her, and then they were off. For the next hour, they walked together in the park and fed the ducks the loaf of bread he brought along with him. It was strange to see him doing something so innocent and mundane, but he laughed along with her as they tore off little pieces of bread and watched the ducks dive for it. When all the bread was used up, he pulled her to him and kissed her firmly on the lips, his arms wrapping around her and his tongue darting further in her mouth than was strictly appropriate in a public place.

She quickly found she didn't care.

When they parted, they wandered slowly around the duck pond, just enjoying the pleasant weather and the buzz of activity around them. She was just about to inquire as to their next activity when she heard the tell-tale ding of her cell phone. His vibrated at precisely the same time, and they both groaned a little in apprehension. Blair extracted her phone first, opening it up to a picture of herself in the throes of her passionate kiss with Chuck. **Spotted: C and B playing a little too nice in Central Park. And here we thought Chuck only did one-night stands. Looks like B's reeled in a Bass.**

"I don't know what's worse. The real-time surveillance or the predictable play on words," Chuck said wryly as he shoved his phone back in his pocket.

"At least she still cares enough to report on me. I thought I was going to become anonymous."

"Please, Blair. You? Anonymous? You may have temporarily lost your throne, but everyone in the city knows it's just a matter of time before they come swarming back."

"No talking about school, remember? What's next?" she asked, anxious to move on to another topic.

"Shopping."

"I'm fairly certain we've both done that."

"Not this kind of shopping. You haven't gone baby shopping yet," he pointed out.

"And you have?" she challenged.

"The rattle?" he reminded her. "I've already bought one thing for the baby. Now it's your turn."

He took her to La Layette et Plus, a fashionable (and pricey) boutique, and it took her a solid hour to sift through the exquisite collection of layette sets and blankets and adorable little accessories. She promptly decided she needed to go baby shopping much more often, and as soon as they found out the sex of the baby in a few weeks, she would be back to buy clothes. In the end, she settled on a beautiful and amazingly soft cashmere receiving blanket in a delicate cream colour perfect for a boy or a girl.

"So far so good, Bass," she told him as he took the shopping bag from her and carried it out to the limo. "Central Park and shopping? Not bad."

"And you still have a full day ahead of you," he assured her. "But lunch first?"

"I'm famished," she agreed. "Is this a first for one of us?"

"It's my turn," he nodded as they slipped into the back of the limo. When they reached their destination, she was surprised by his choice of venue. She expected a typically upper class restaurant, but he'd gone for something a little different and chosen a tourist hotspot.

"Serendipity?" she asked sceptically. "How have you never been here?"

"Who would have taken me?" he shrugged. It was meant to be casual, but she could hear the hurt beneath his nonchalance. As a child, her father had taken her here all the time for frozen hot chocolate or giant hot fudge sundaes. The place was always packed, but she couldn't imagine any Upper East Side child who hadn't been here at least a few times for the indulgent desserts. But of course, he was right. Who would have taken him? Certainly not Bart Bass. She was overwhelmed with a sudden desire to hug him, but instead, she picked up his hand and threaded their fingers together, smiling a little as she tugged him inside.

Baby Bass was exceptionally hungry today, so she forced herself not to feel guilty about her delicious lemon chicken and even swiped a few of his french fries off his plate. There was no way she would let him leave without trying an ice cream sundae, so they each picked one and traded them back and forth. "Is it as good as you expected?" she asked as she pushed the maple walnut sundae back to him and accepted the hot fudge in return. She took a bite of the ice cream, but the huge dollop of whipped cream got in her way and ended up on her face instead of her mouth.

"It just got a lot better," he grinned as he reached over to wipe it off for her. "Blair Waldorf with whipped cream on her nose. How many people have seen that?"

"None, and if you tell anyone I'll kill you," she smiled sweetly.

"Threatening the father of your child? Not very smart, Waldorf."

"You're right. If it's anything like you, I'll need all the help I can get," she quipped. "Especially if it's a boy."

"You mean _when_ it's a boy," he teased. "And don't think I've forgotten our little bet. I'm still narrowing down precisely which fantasy I'd like you to fulfill."

"The possibilties alone could could your depraved mind busy for weeks."

"Weeks?" he raised in eyebrow. "You don't know me at all, do you, Waldorf?"

"Thank God it's a girl and I won't have to find out. I hope your credit card is ready for a little workout."

"Oh, it always is," he assured her and pushed back the sundae.

"Ugh, no, I can't eat another bite," she refused. She could practically feel her hips getting wider as the fat and calories from the meal sank in. He paid the bill and took her by the arm, and she valiantly attempted to push aside the familiar urge to rid herself of the enormous meal she just consumed. _It's for the baby, it's for the baby, _she reminded herself over and over, trying her best not to let the fear and anxiety ruin her otherwise perfect date. Chuck had obviously gone to great lengths to make this the best first date he could, and she had to hand it to him. She never truly believed Chuck Bass could pull off romance, but then again, he'd been advising Nate on the very subject for years. He might not have the logistics of a relationship down, but he knew how to pull off a grand gesture or two, from the Erickson Beamon necklace to the Tiffany's-inspired date. "So it's my turn, right?" she asked as he escorted her back into the limo.

"Yes, but our next stop is going to be a while."

"A while? Where are we going?"

"You'll see when we get there."

"Chuck!" she protested, though she not-so-secretly loved all the effort he put into planning their day.

"Not going to work, Princess. You'll find out."

The limo ride itself was fairly quick, but as soon as she stepped out, she knew why their next stop was going to take a while. "A plane?" she asked in confusion. "Why are we at the airport?"

"Because we're going on a trip."

"I gathered that," she rolled her eyes. "I didn't bring anything with me."

"Then I'm glad I already thought of that," he smirked, perhaps enjoying himself just a little too much. Right on cue, Arthur appeared with their luggage. She had no idea when he could have gotten any of her clothes or personal belongings, but Chuck knew better than to strand her somewhere without the essentials.

"You're really not going to tell me where we're going?"

"You'll see when we get there."

She frowned in mock irritation, but she found herself incredibly excited as she stepped onto the plane with him. Only Chuck Bass would secure a private plane for a first date, and though she'd never really considered it before, being forever linked to him certainly came with perks. Her own family was incredibly wealthy, of course, but Chuck took extravagance to a whole new extreme, and unlike Nate, he never seemed burdened by his riches or guilty about using them for maximum pleasure. In fact, Chuck never felt bad about pleasure, and it made being with him a constant adventure. After years of stability and predictability, from the flowers she received on every special occasion to the (wrong) box of chocolates for every apology, perhaps she could learn to appreciate the way he kept her constantly on her toes.

As soon as the plane lifted off the runway, she started to feel the effects of pregnancy and an already busy day beginning to set in. Her eyelids grew heavy, and Chuck reached over to close the shades. "It won't be long, but you could take a quick nap."

"Not long?" she asked innocently. "So we're-"

"I'm not telling you anything, Waldorf," he cut her off. "But good try."

"Fine," she huffed and settled in as well as she could with her ever-expanding stomach in the airplane seat. She closed her eyes and immediately started to drift off, but just as she did, she felt the strangest sensation in her stomach. Her eyes snapped open and she started to sit up, her hand flying to her baby bump.

"What?" Chuck asked, brow furrowing in concern. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she shook her head. "I think…I think I felt something."

"You felt something? Like what? Like a kick?"

She nodded and moved her hand around, trying to feel for another. "They said I wouldn't feel anything until I was farther along, but…" she stopped short, smiling as she felt another tiny movement. It was subtle right now, a slight fluttering in her stomach that could be nothing at all. But along with the strange feelings was her first true hint at motherly intuition. Her baby was kicking. Maybe just a little, maybe barely a little tap, but her little one was in there, and it was amazing. "Here," she insisted, picking up his hand and guiding it to the place where she just felt the kick.

"I don't feel anything," he shook his head.

"Wait," she insisted, not wanting him to give up before he got the chance to feel it as well.

They sat in silent anticipation, anxiously awaiting another movement fro. the baby. Just when it seemed like time to give up, Blair felt the quickening again and saw Chuck's expression change. He laughed in wonder, his eyes lighting up just a little. It was both sweet and terrifying the way he got so excited about his child while looking years younger himself. It just reminded her once more that they were much too young for this, and Chuck Bass was the least likely father figure in the world. But here he was, doing everything he could to make their first real date one for the ages, and looking at him as they both felt the baby kick somehow made it all okay.

"Wow," he murmured. "Told you my son would be ahead of the curve."

"Daughter," she retorted without missing a beat.

"That's a Bass boy, Blair," he countered seriously.

"Cute alliteration. But no."

"We'll find out soon, won't we?"

Blair took a deep breath and nodded in confirmation. "Three weeks." As much as she wanted to know if she was having a boy or a girl, somehow knowing would make it all the more real. She didn't think it could get much more intense than sharing the news with the entire school, but even with the growing bump beneath her clothes, the idea of having an actual _child _still seemed vague and uncertain.

"Have you uh…thought of names?"

"No," she lied, glancing out the window in hopes he wouldn't notice.

"Let me guess," he said wryly. "Audrey? Holly?"

"For you information, I was more creative than that. I was thinking…Natasha. Or…Gabrielle."

"Creative?" he raised an eyebrow. "_War and Peace_ and _Paris When It Sizzles_. You aren't fooling me, Waldorf."

"Fine. What would you suggest?"

"How about….Holden?"

"Holden," she repeated incredulously. "As in Holden Caulfield?"

"Why not?"

"Because our child already has a 50% chance of being a sociopath thanks to your genetic contribution. I'd rather not make it a certainty. Next?"

"Charles is always a solid choice."

Blair looked for something within reach to throw at him and found nothing. "Your suggestions are naming our child after a mentally ill literary character or yourself?"

"Better than the Hepburn film collection."

"For your information, I think Paul would make an excellent name for a boy."

"Paul Bass?" he tested. "He'd die of boredom."

"Good thing he'd be Paul Waldorf, then," she said smartly, then turned away from him to look at the window. He was quiet for a while, and she rested her hand on her stomach as she watched the clouds outside the window and hoped for another kick.

They hadn't been in the air very long when the pilot announced they were beginning their descent. The clouds soon broke, and she made out an island coming into view, though she couldn't immediately identify where they were landing. She looked to Chuck expectantly, but he just shook his head. "Patience," he insisted, earning another well-placed glare. They finally landed a few minutes later, and the pilot had obviously been instructed to give no hints as to their destination. "Welcome to Martha's Vineyard, Blair," Chuck told her as he helped her off the plane.

"Martha's Vineyard?" she asked in confusion. "I don't get it."

"One time you told me you always wanted to ride the carousel in Central Park, and your mom wouldn't let you."

"She said it was for the public school children of the world," she nodded. "Not Waldorfs. But what does that have to do with Martha's Vineyard?"

"I thought your first carousel ride should be special, so we're going to the oldest carousel in the United States," he grinned and waved over the driver picking them up. "It's been here since 1884, but it was built in 1876."

"I can't believe you did all this," she shook her head, touched that he remembered her desire to ride the carousel and even more touched that he had done so much research and planning to make this the most incredible first date of all time. "Chuck Bass is a romantic. Who knew?"

"Now you do," he shrugged it off. She felt the sudden impulse to kiss him right here right now and forget about the carousel and the rest of their date, but she was still too shocked by his sudden transformation to do anything but follow along as they climbed into the car.

Hours later, they had ridden the carousel three times and wandered around until she could stand on her feet no longer. "Tired?" he asked knowingly as he guided her back to the waiting car.

"A little," she admitted. In truth, she was exhausted. Even in comfortable shoes her feet were starting to ache, a slight headache was setting in, and she wanted more than anything to crawl into a comfortable bed and sleep. Blair Waldorf of fifteen weeks ago would still have the energy to lead a school – or an army – but the baby weighed her down in more ways than one. The last thing she wanted to do was cut their day short, though, and she didn't have the heart to tell him she was ready to wrap it up before the sun even set.

"I'll take you to our hotel," he offered. "You can nap."

"No, I'm fine," she shook her head.

"We've been walking all day, and we still have one more thing to do this evening. Admit it," he smirked. "You can't wait to get into bed with me."

"Ugh," she rolled her eyes and smacked his arm. "I'll take a nap, but not with you."

Thirty minutes later, she somehow found herself laying in the same bed with Chuck Bass. Of course they'd shared a bed before, but suddenly it seemed a little weird to just be sleeping next to him. They even watched movies in bed before, but taking a late afternoon nap with Chuck next to her felt strange and foreign and almost disturbingly domestic. _Is this how it's going to be?_ she wondered as she absent-mindedly touched her stomach once more. She'd never been able to hope that Chuck could actually step up like this, that he would so earnestly and carefully take the steps to make this work. He'd been surprisingly sweet all day, and as odd as it felt at times, it was also so undeniably effortless to slip her hand in his and just let herself go with whatever he had planned. _I'm starting to trust him, _she realised as she started to drift off. For the first time, she pictured Chuck holding a baby, and instead of terror, she felt a peace lulling her into sleep.

There was something incredibly unnerving about how beautiful Chuck found the girl sleeping next to him to be. His _modus operandi_ was always a quick romp in the sack followed by promptly kicking his companion out so he could sleep in solitude. Before Blair, a girl never just slept in his bed. Before Blair, he had no use for company in the bedroom unless the company was purely physical. And before Blair, he certainly never lay in bed just to watch someone sleep. Chuck Bass didn't _do_ sappy and sentimental, so the strange feelings that washed over him at the sight of her so peacefully napping next to him were downright terrifying. Besides some innocent touching and that one electrifying kiss, he kept his hands to himself today, but he wasn't yet growing tired of her. It was strange and new, and he wasn't sure he liked it. Caring her for like this was, without a doubt, the most dangerous thing he could do. She already hurt him once, more than he ever thought any girl could ever hurt him. And back then it had been their dirty little secret. Now they were going public. Actually trying their hands at a relationship. The two most defective, dysfunctional people on the Upper East Side attempting to make it work with a baby between them and the world against them. It was a recipe for disaster, for weeping and gnashing of teeth, for fire and brimstone and every other terrible analogy he could think of. Everything was riding on this, and if there was one thing Chuck was good at, it was destruction. This could only end in tears, and the thought made him sick to his stomach.

_I don't want to hurt her_, he realised. Hurting people never really bothered him before, and suddenly, he had not one but two people in his life that he _wanted_ and _needed_ to protect. For the first time in his life, there was someone other than his father that he wanted to please. And Blair was probaly the only person who truly knew just how desperately he craved his father's approval. Maybe that was why it was so easy to give that up for her, to abandon his desire to make his father happy in order to make _her _happy, to give her any happiness he could possibly manage to create. But still he had this nagging feeling that it would never be enough. As she slept quietly beside him, one hand subconsciously gravitating towards the slight swell of her stomach, he couldn't help thinking he was going to fail her. Maybe not today. Maybe not a week or a month from now. But soon they were going to have a baby, and he still couldn't even completely grasp that approaching reality. He felt the baby kick and it was amazing, incredible, unbelievable. It was _his_ child stirring within her, but he couldn't picture it yet, couldn't imagine himself holding a baby or changing diapers or pushing a stroller. All too soon he would have to, but he still felt like he was playing some kind of elaborate game without real consequences.

Then he looked at Blair, and he realised he couldn't do it again. He couldn't sabotage it this time. He couldn't hurt her again. He might not fully understand this whole fatherhood thing, but losing Blair once had sent him running halfway around the world to escape the strange ripping of his heart. Losing her _and_ this little person they created…it simply wasn't an option. And that was why today had to be completely perfect. She might have wanted a simple dinner out, but he knew it would never be enough. He had to sweep her off her feet, convince her he could be good enough when nothing could be further from the truth.

Troubled by the dark thoughts and feeling overwhelmed, he climbed out of the bed and wandered out to the living room of the suite to make a few phone calls and make sure everything was in place for this evening. He had one more outing planned, one more chance to convince her he could be charming and romantic without screwing it all up.

When Blair woke, he had a dress laid out for her and had changed himself into a more appropriate outfit for their evening. "New clothes?" she asked as she eyed the dress appreciatively. "You've outdone yourself, Bass."

He just smirked and straightened his bow tie, silently watching as she slipped into the bathroom to change. He thought about reminding her it was nothing he hadn't seen before, but he wisely thought better of it. If he was lucky, the final touch on the date tonight would convince her she should be with him, and then maybe she would let him see the wonders beneath the new dress.

Blair stepped out of the bathroom some time later, looking absolutely perfect in her cobalt blue gown with her hair swept up to reveal her long graceful neck. He swallowed hard, still struggling to comprehend how she had gone from Nate's to _his_. He'd always admired her from afar, admired all that buttoned-up energy, the prim and proper beauty just waiting to be undone. "You look stunning," he said appreciatively and stepped over to kiss her cheek. "You should take your coat."

"Where are we going that I'll need a coat?"

"I never took you for such a slow learner, Blair. It isn't going to work," he reminded her once more. "Now let's get going." He took her hand and guided her downstairs to the waiting car.

The ride there was short, and a few minutes later they were stepping out onto the marina. "A boat?" she asked in surprise. "I've been on a boat before. As have you."

"Yes, but I've never gone dancing before. We just happen to be doing it on a yacht. Along with dinner."

"I am impressed," she smiled and impulsively kissed his cheek.

"And you are my toughest critic," he couldn't help quipping as he recalled the night that started all of this. As Blair took his hand and started towards the boat, he found he couldn't really regret any of it, even when it ended with him on a yacht with his first real girlfriend who just happened to be bearing his first child.

Blair seemed sufficiently delighted with everything as the meal was presented course by course. The food was exquisite and the setting even more perfect as they sailed into the darkening night. He now had only one more surprise in store for her, and as soon as she declared defeat against the dark chocolate cake with caramel sauce, he stood and offered his hand.

"I'm not sure I can move," she admitted as he helped her stand.

"Was everything acceptable?"

"It was amazing, Chuck. Everything has been…amazing," she answered sincerely. He could feel his chest puffing a little with pride; maybe he could do this after all. Maybe he could be a good boyfriend, despite all the odds against him. Everyone expected him to fail, including – and especially – his own father, but maybe he could prove him wrong. Maybe he could prove everyone wrong and actually do something right in his life. There were few things he'd ever wanted that he couldn't just buy for himself, but he wanted this.

Signalling one of the staff, he stepped back from Blair and waited for the first strains of _Moon River_ to begin. At first he hadn't intended for the entire date to be fashioned after her favourite film, but when he hired musicians for the dinner cruise, he knew the first song had to be this one. Without saying a word, he positioned his hands on her waist as they slowly began to dance.

When the song ended, Blair stepped forward and rested her head on his shoulder. "Thank you," she whispered. "This week has been so awful. Thank you for doing all this."

"Thank _you_," he repeated back to her. "For giving me a chance. I know I'm not

the person you want to be here with, but-"

Blair abruptly released him and stepped back, an odd expression on her face. "What are you talking about?" she asked in confusion.

"Come on, Blair. We both know that I've never been the star of your romantic fantasies. I know it was always supposed to be Nate, and this hasn't really gone according to plan."

"None of it has gone according to plan," she agreed. "But…that doesn't mean I'd rather be here with Nate. Is that what all this was about?"

"I wanted to give you a romantic first date."

"Becase you wanted to outdo Nate?"

He didn't say anything, unable to deny it but not wanting to confirm it, either. They stood awkwardly for a moment, and he felt certain she was going to swivel on one tiny foot and turn away from him again, just as she had done that night at Cotillion. Instead, she let out a loud sigh and shook her head in amusement.

"You really are dense sometimes. I thought Archibald was the clueless one, but you're giving him a run for his money."

"As much as I appreciate the insult…"

"You've completely ruined my figure, Bass, and my social life. Maybe I'm crazy for saying this, but…I'm glad. I'm glad that it's you," she confessed. "I'm glad it's you instead of him because he would never do all this for me. Maybe it was supposed to be him, but it was never going to be," she acknowledged sadly. "So as much as I appreciate all of this, you don't have to bribe me, Chuck. I just want you to be here. For all of it."

"Blair Waldorf turning down extravagance?" he tried to joke his way out of the heavy moment. "Never thought I'd see the day."

"Shut up," she smacked him lightly. "I'm not turning down anything. But I mean it, Bass. Promise me I'm not going to do this alone, and that's all I'll ask you for. Except maybe a nice dinner every now and then."

"You won't do it alone, Blair," he promised earnestly and kissed her on the lips.

"Let's go back," she whispered when they parted. She looked up at him, and he recognised the lust in her eyes and the longing in her voice. She wouldn't have to ask him twice.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: I haven't updated this in an unforgivably long time. I can't promise that I'll be updating again soon, as I have gotten very stuck on this part of the story! The good news is, once I get through the next few chapters, most of the rest is already written. Hopefully I will just sit down and get the rest of these pesky chapters done! I have no intention of ever permanently abandoning this story, but it may take me a little longer than anticipated to complete it. Thanks for all the people who have reviewed and encouraged me to keep going! **

Blair Waldorf was a relationship girl. Early on in life, she fell in love with the very idea of love. The first time she laid eyes on Nate Archibald, she decided he was going to be the co-star in the romance of her life, and she began to fantasize about all that entailed. Before elementary school was over, she knew who she was going to marry, and she imagined Nate as Cary Grant and Fred Astaire and Gregory Peck to her Audrey for as long as she could remember. She loved being part of an _us_. The first time Nate used that word (they were in middle school, and she still had the journal entry to commemorate the special day), she very nearly swooned in the courtyard. She thought it would have been absurdly romantic if she had. Her obsession with relationships could, however, be a fault. She saw the best in Nate, right up until the very end, because she simply couldn't fathom the idea of not being one half of Blair and Nate. But even when that love affair ended (the first time, anyway), she knew she wasn't giving up on relationships. She loved the attention she received being someone's girlfriend, but she also loved the attention she gave. Blair Waldorf simply loved relationships. When all was well in her love life, it felt as though all was well in the world.

Maybe that was why returning to school after her weekend with Chuck didn't feel nearly as miserable as before. People still stared, the girls still shot her dirty looks, and the teachers were beginning to look at her with a mixture of judgment and pity. But Chuck was playing the role of boyfriend rather well, from the surprisingly sweet text messages to the flowers he surprised her with in the morning to the dates he had planned for after school evenings. The advantage of dating Chuck instead of Nate was that Chuck was a classic, like her. He appreciated a good black and white film that would have bored Nate to tears, and though he tended to act on his baser impulses, Chuck knew how to be smooth and suave and sophisticated. She wondered, as they dined at Jean Gorges this evening, how she missed for so long just how well-suited they were for one another. Chuck appreciated the finer things in life, just as she did, and he never felt guilty about that. He had no qualms demanding the highest quality, and if he didn't get his way, he made sure to do something about it. Nate was always so _tortured_ about his wealth, so obsessed with the idea that none of them deserved it. He turned to pot to drown out the noise and just…drifted. But Chuck was his total opposite. Chuck didn't ask questions about his money. Chuck knew what he was entitled to, and he took it. There was something thrilling about that kind of confidence, that devil may care attitude of his. Her life was an incomparable mess at the moment, but with Chuck, she could _breathe_. The acute pain of Serena's absence was gradually fading, and the plotting against her had only helped ease the sting of that particular betrayal. She had to buy clothes that fit her this week, but the shopping trip inspired only a few tears as she finally found skirts that buttoned and blouses that didn't gape. Somehow, Chuck Bass was making life easier. She never thought it possible, but she wasn't about to question it.

"Goodnight, Beautiful," he grinned and kissed her as the limo pulled up in front of her building. She still had homework to do and it was getting late, so she kept the kiss chaste and then hurried inside.

She knew something was off from the moment the elevator door opened. A frantic and frazzled Dorota quickly appeared, taking Blair's light coat and giving her several worried looks. "Dorota," she began suspiciously. "Why do you look so nervous?"

"Your mama has company," the maid informed her quietly.

"And?" she asked expectantly.

"You go see yourself, Miss Blair," Dorota insisted. Whenever she tried to stay out of it, it couldn't be good. Taking a deep breath, Blair forged ahead into the sitting room where her mother was drinking tea from small china cups with a young-looking couple seated across from her. The young woman was the picture of Upper East Side perfection with smooth, glossy blonde hair perfectly swept into a bun and an exquisite pearl necklace falling over her light pink sweater. The man was equally lovely and almost eerily matching the woman Blair could only guess was his wife.

"Blair, Darling, I'm so glad you're here," Eleanor gushed as she rose and awkwardly embraced her daughter. Blair was too stunned to react, but she knew the hug was a ploy by her mother to impress the couple across from her. "Emory, Alice, I'd like you to meet my daughter, Blair. Blair, this is Emory and Alice Hunt."

"Hi, it's nice to meet you," Blair forced a pleasant smile towards the picture perfect couple.

"You as well!" Alice gushed. "You're just lovely. How far along are you?"

Blair's smile faltered a little as she wondered just who the hell these people were and what they were doing in her home. The news was obviously public now, but her mother never spoke of it. They pretended it wasn't happening, and she couldn't imagine her mother honestly talking about the pregnancy to business associates or even friends. "About four months," she answered carefully and then looked to her mother for some sort of an explanation.

"Wonderful!" Alice said exuberantly. "And no problems?"

"No, none," she shook her head. "If you'll excuse me, I have some homework I need to-"

"Just a moment, Blair," her mother insisted. "Let's all sit down and have a chat."

"But Mother, I-"

"Have a seat, Blair," Eleanor demanded pointedly. Blair did as she was told, not at all liking this situation and realising that her mother was up to no good here. "Alice, why don't you tell Blair a little about yourself."

The blonde woman turned to Blair with an overly cheery smile that seemed entirely too Stepford for comfort. Her husband had placed a supportive hand on her knee, and there was something off about the situation that Blair couldn't quite place her finger on. "Well, Emory and I are both Yale graduates. We met there on our very first day of orientation."

"Isn't that lovely, Blair?" Eleanor spoke up. "My daughter has been wanting to go to Yale her whole life."

"That's wonderful," Blair forced herself to agree, still not understanding her mother's motives. "Yale is an excellent school."

"It is," Alice agreed. "We've been married almost five years now. Emory is a lawyer at a large firm. In fact, he just got a wonderful promotion," she gushed, looking proudly to her husband. Blair stole a quick glance at the clock, trying to figure out exactly how long she needed to wait before attempting to excuse herself again.

"Why don't you tell Blair what you were just telling me," Eleanor prodded.

"Emory and I just moved into the most charming building," Alice continued in her sweet tone. "It's very close to Central Park, so we can take family walks every day. We've already picked the bedroom that will be the nursery, and it's just beautiful with the perfect amount of natural light."

"Oh, are you expecting as well?" Blair asked, feeling a little envious that Alice was still rail-thin.

"Not exactly," Alice chuckled uncomfortably and shared an odd look with her husband.

"Unfortunately, Alice and I are unable to have children," Emory said sadly and reached for his wife's hand. "But we are very ready to have children. Alice is exceptional with the young ones. They just adore her. We're certain that we'll be excellent parents and be able to provide a baby with a loving, supportive home."

All of this personal talk from people she barely knew was making Blair exceedingly uncomfortable, and she really did have homework she hoped to finish. "I hope that something will work out for you in the near future. Mother," she said, turning to Eleanor, "I really should be seeing to my homework."

"Eleanor?" Emory asked in concern. "Has there been some type of misunderstanding?"

"No. No, of course not," her mother shook her head. "Blair, Darling, the Hunts are here about the baby. About _your_ baby. Clearly they're the ideal parents for your child, so I think the three of you should get to know each other a little better before we begin formalizing agreements."

"I'm sorry, there must be some kind of mistake," she shook her head. "I'm sorry to have wasted your time," she told the couple, "but my baby isn't up for adoption."

"I don't understand," Alice frowned and looked to Eleanor. "You said-"

"What did you say, Mother?" Blair demanded, her heart sinking as she realised what had transpired. "You told them…you told them I'm not keeping my baby?" Tears of hurt and disappointment and sheer humiliation stung Blair's eyes, and this time she wouldn't even blame it on the hormones. Her mother knew how important this was to her, and she had gone behind her back and told these people they could just _have_ her baby. Her mother _knew_ she wanted this child, but she still plotted and schemed to get rid of it. And the worst part was, Eleanor had to know how vulnerable she was, how bad things had been at school, with Serena. She knew that given the right timing, the right pressure, just the right set of circumstances…

"My daughter is simply confused right now," Eleanor hurried to explain, ignoring Blair's inquiry entirely. "Of course this has been an incredibly difficult decision for her to make."

"Actually, it hasn't," Blair interjected, refusing to let her mother speak for her. For once in her life, she had to stand up for herself or everything she suffered for would be lost. "Mr. and Mrs. Hunt, I'm sorry that my mother lied to you, but my baby is not and never was up for adoption. My boyfriend and I-"

"Boyfriend?" her mother asked incredulously. "Don't be absurd, Blair! You cannot possibly be dating Chuck Bass!"

"Alice, I think it's time for us to go," Emory announced curtly as he started to rise.

"No, don't be silly. Let's all sit and discuss this like adults," Eleanor insisted. "Blair doesn't know what she wants. Given time and careful thought, she'll see, as I do, that it's simply absurd to keep a baby at her age. She has such a bright future at Yale ahead of her. Despite this little rebellion, I'm confident that we can reach some sort of agreement that will benefit everyone. My Blair is a smart girl and will do the right thing."

"_Your_ Blair?" she challenged incredulously. "Please, Mother. I'm more Dorota's child than I am yours."

"Blair!" her mother cried in outrage.

"Mr. and Mrs. Hunt," Blair began as calmly as possible, just barely holding herself together. "I'm sorry to have disappointed you, but as you can see, my mother is a twisted individual with absolutely no motherly instincts whatsoever. I'm keeping my baby," she insisted even as she felt the tears beginning to leak from her eyes. She was trying to remain poised, but these people were here because they wanted her baby, because her own mother had gone against her wishes and lined up this perfect young couple to just _take_ her child away from her. If Eleanor had it her way, Blair would never hold her child, name her child, raise her child. If Eleanor could have everything just the way she wanted, there wouldn't even _be_ a baby, but now that there was, she would do whatever it took to prevent Blair from raising the child that would almost certainly mar Eleanor's sterling reputation. "I understand that this baby has ruined all your plans for me," she began, her voice wavering just a little as she stared down her mother. "But maybe if you had cared about doing your job as my parent, we wouldn't be in this situation. Do you have any idea what it's like? Do you know how it's been for me? Daddy left, and where were you? Where were you when Nate cheated on me with my best friend? Where were you when my life was falling apart? Chuck Bass was the only one there for me. He's _still_ the only one there for me. Why would I give away part of him when he's the only one who cares?"

"If Chuck Bass cared so much about you, he wouldn't ask you to give up everything for him!" her mother cried indignantly.

"He hasn't asked anything of me! This is what _I_ want!"

"You don't know what you want," Eleanor retorted easily. "Now go to your room while I discuss this with Alice and Emory."

"I think we've had enough. Come, Alice," Emory insisted, taking his wife's hand and abruptly leading her out of the room.

"There. See what you've done?" Eleanor accused. "I hope you're happy."

"Not even close," she shook her head and hurriedly fled the room before she completely fell apart. She heard Dorota close behind her, but as soon as she reached her own room she slammed the door and locked it, sliding down to the floor as she began to sob into her hands. "Go away!" she yelled as Dorota began to knock on the door. Fat tears poured down her cheeks as she cried hysterically. The mere thought of what her mother had done nearly made her sick, and the tears kept coming as she remembered the lovely couple with their sweet faces and sweet voices. Blair pictured delicate little fingers reaching out to take her precious newborn baby, pictured that strange, foreign couple holding her first child and loving it and raising it far away from the mother who carried it and felt it kick as it grew inside of her. She placed her hand over the swell of her stomach and felt for her child, hoping it might give her a reassuring kick, remind her why she was doing all this. The baby did not oblige, but even placing her hand there reminded her just how much she wanted this. She couldn't imagine letting pain befall her baby, couldn't imagine wanting to be apart from the little life inside of her, no matter how inconvenient or ill-timed. Her own mother felt none of the same instinct, none of the same drive. While her baby was still in the womb Blair knew she would do anything, go anywhere, be anyone to raise this child. Eleanor had left the task to Dorota without a second thought. No wonder she thought nothing of giving away Blair's child to pretty strangers. As long as someone else vowed to do the job well, what did she care?

The sobs eventually lessened, but Blair's grief did not. Dorota had now given up on the door, so she pulled herself off the floor and stumbled over to the bed to curl up beneath the covers in her misery. She couldn't imagine facing her mother now, and she was terrified that Eleanor was right. With enough time and the pressure applied in just the right places, maybe she would decide her baby was better off with someone else. With a mother like Eleanor, what really made her think that she _could_ raise a child without screwing it up?

An hour later, she was still crying softly but beginning to fall asleep when she heard the doorknob turn. Of course. Dorota had given her some time, but now at least the devoted maid was worried about her and was making good use of her key. "Blair?" she heard someone ask.

But it wasn't Dorota.

"Chuck. What are you doing here?" she asked as she flipped over and wiped at her impossibly red eyes.

"Dorota. What happened?" he demanded.

She didn't even know how badly she wanted him here until he was taking a seat next to her on the bed, his eyes filled with concern and confusion. The tears began anew, and soon his arms were around her as she described the ambush and the betrayal.

"Get your things," he told her curtly when she finished explaining. "You aren't staying here."

She could only nod, more than happy to get out of this house. She could feel her mother poisoning her thoughts, infecting her mind with this horrible notion that someone else should raise the baby Blair so desperately wanted. She blindly threw items into her overnight bag as Chuck waited impatiently, his displeasure with the situation manifested through anger instead of tears and grief. Within minutes she was ready to go, and Chuck took her by the elbow as he guided her out.

"Where do you think you're going?" Eleanor demanded when she saw them pass by. "Blair!"

"She's coming with me," Chuck answered for her.

"She most certainly is not!"

"You've lost the the right to make _any_ decisions when it comes to me," Blair cut in before Chuck had the chance to defend her himself. "You tried to take away my child. How do you think I could stay under the same roof now?"

"You don't know what you're doing, Blair," her mother said confidently. "I'm giving you the option to have a future. Something you will never have as long as you believe that you're going to a raise a child with _him_. You've always been prone to daydreams, but this little fantasy of yours has to stop before you let it ruin everything."

"This is no fantasy," she shook her head sadly. "But it is my child." With that, she spun on her heel and followed Chuck out to the waiting limo. He still held a little too tightly to her elbow, his jaw clenched in obvious displeasure. Now that they had escaped, the anger vanished and the tears began anew.

"Are you alright?" Chuck asked as she cried pitifully and wrapped her arms around herself. She could only shake her head. No, of course she wasn't alright. There was nothing about this that was alright, and the further they got from home, the less alright she felt. It was an immense relief to escape her mother's influence, but they had a plan. The guest room was going to be converted into a nursery, and when the baby was born, it would live there with Blair and her mother and Dorota all around to help her and teach her how to take care of it. There would be other watchful eyes to look after both her and the baby, other hands to help hold it when it cried and feed it when it was hungry. What would she do now? Could she and Chuck really do this on their own? Would he even want to?

The tears fell a little harder, and she felt Chuck shift uncomfortably next to her. She wanted to say something to him, apologise for being such a disaster and just beg him not to leave now, but she was too busy panicking and sobbing.

"Blair," he said as the limo stopped outside the Palace. "What do you want me to do?"

"I don't know," she managed through her tears. They sat there a little longer, waiting for her to compose herself at least enough to walk through the hotel to the elevator without attracting too much unwanted attention. When she was at least a little more in control, he climbed out and took her by the elbow, carefully steering her inside and straight to the elevator. She was still crying when they got to his suite, so he ushered her into the bedroom and then disappeared into the living room.

Alone with her thoughts, Blair wiped at her tears and looked around the suite he called home. This was all they had now. He'd been kicked out of his own home, and she'd been effectively kicked out of hers. She knew her mother, and she knew she wouldn't apologise or change her mind about the baby. As long as Eleanor wanted to give away this baby to someone else, returning home wasn't an option. She had just a little over five months now to prepare for the baby's arrival, and all she had was a boyfriend with a cold, impersonal hotel suite. She tried to imagine a crib stuck in the corner of the room, and the thought just made her cry all over again.

Eventually her tears dried, but Chuck never returned to the bedroom. _Typical_, she thought bitterly. He was probably nursing a scotch and trying to figure out what he was going to do with a sobbing girlfriend in his bed. After a moment, however, she heard a door opening and the sound of hushed voices. "Thanks for coming. She's in the bedroom," she was able to make out on Chuck's end of the conversation. Before she had time to prepare herself, the door opened and Serena's blonde head popped into the bedroom. A seething remark was on the tip of her tongue, almost like a reflex at the sight of her former best friend, but then she looked at Serena's concerned face and crumpled. She didn't even know how badly she needed her friend until right this very moment, but suddenly, Serena was the only person she wanted with her. Serena had known her all her life, and they had shared all their joy and all their pain for seventeen years. No matter what Serena had done, she was the only one who could make her feel okay again.

"Oh B," Serena sighed, stepping inside and shutting the door behind her.

"S," she sniffled miserably.

Within seconds, Serena had closed the distance between them and wrapped Blair in a fierce embrace. She held her close and squeezed so tightly Blair could hardly breathe, but she couldn't find it in her to protest at the moment. "Chuck told me what happened," Serena murmured as they hugged. "I'm so sorry." Blair wasn't sure what she thought about Chuck knowing just what to do for her, so she didn't allow herself to think about it and just cried into Serena's shoulder. Serena just sat there and stroked her back for a few minutes, giving her time to exorcise the tears once more.

"What am I going to do, S?" she asked when she eventually sat up and wiped at her eyes. For now she didn't even want to think about their fight or the fact that she and Serena weren't even supposed to be speaking right now. They could deal with all of that later, when the crisis wasn't so acute and she wasn't feeling quite so terrible. Besides, Serena was here now, when she really needed her, and that had to count for something. "My mother is hardly Mother of the Year," she continued, "but at least she was going to be there. At least she knows what to do with a baby!"

"Are you sure?" Serena tried to joke. "I thought Dorota was the one allowed around children."

"That's probably true," Blair conceded. "But I won't even have Dorota! And Chuck brought me back here, but I seriously doubt he wants me to _live_ here. And what about the baby? I can't bring my baby home to a hotel," she said distastefully, wrinkling her nose at the thought. Babies were supposed to have perfect little nurseries with cute little decorations and pretty little furniture. She had already been fantasizing about nursery themes, but there would be no painted room filled with toys if home was The Palace Hotel.

"Well, I know it's not ideal, but with Chuck not there we have an extra bedroom," Serena pointed out. You could stay with us, at least until the baby is born."

It seemed wrong to live in Chuck's home without him, but at the moment, Blair was technically homeless. "Are you sure your mom would be okay with that?"

"Oh believe me, she's all about family right now," she rolled her eyes. "But you don't have to decide anything right now. Right now you should relax and just…not think."

"I don't know if that's possible," she sighed wearily, leaning back in Chuck's bed to get comfortable against the pillows. Her back had been aching all day from the added weight to her stomach, and sitting in an awkward position certainly hadn't helped. She desperately wanted a massage – and a drink – but for now she would settle for the absurd amount of pillows on the bed. "She just…ambushed me, S. And now I can't help thinking that she might be right. Maybe I'm just being selfish by wanting to keep this baby instead of giving it to people better than Chuck and me."

"You're the baby's mom, Blair," Serena said firmly. "There is no one better than you. Just because these people are older and married doesn't mean they're not as screwed up as everyone else. Look at your mother. Or mine. Or Nate's. Or-"

"Okay, I get your point," she cut her off before she could continue listing everyone they'd ever known. "I've just had my whole life worked out, and now I don't even know where I'm going to sleep, much less where I'm going to college, if I even go at all. Everything's falling apart," she shook her head. "In five months the baby comes, and I can't even go home."

"Blair," Serena began seriously. "I've seen what you're going through. I've seen the Gossip Girl blasts and everyone at school, and you still go in there every day with your head held high. I _know_ how important this baby is to you, or you wouldn't be doing any of it. I think in five months when you're holding that little baby, you're not going to care about anything else."

"I know," she admitted, moving one hand to her stomach. "But I'm scared. I don't want to ruin everything. I want to be a good mom."

"You will be," Serena promised. "You've been taking care of me and everyone else for seventeen years. You're going to be amazing."

Serena moved forward to give her another hug, and Blair gladly accepted it. She felt herself calming a little as her best friend held her, her thoughts slowly quieting and her mind becoming clear once more. She did want and love this baby, more than she ever thought possible. Just the thought of handing her baby over to someone else, allowing someone else to be there for first steps and first words was excruciating. Maybe some women could carry a baby for nine months and then hand it over to someone else, but not her. "I hope you're right," she said quietly.

"I am," she said confidently. "And I'm going to be there if you ever forget. If you'll let me," she added, her voice noticeably more timid on that last portion.

"I always wanted you there, Serena," she answered honestly. "But I don't want to talk about that now. I can't. I'm exhausted," she admitted.

"Of course," Serena nodded in understanding. "I just…I want you to know that I'm figuring things out again. Dan and I aren't together anymore, and it's given me a lot of time to think and just…"

"I know," Blair cut her off, not needing to hear another word.

Serena eyed her carefully for a moment, then finally forced a smile and clapped her hands together in excitement. "So I think we should take advantage of the excellent room service here. Apple pie and chocolate cake?" she proposed.

She already had dessert at the restaurant with Chuck, but she was hungry again, and something about eating dessert in bed made this whole night seem a little less awful. "That sounds….perfect," she agreed.

They spent the next few hours talking and laughing over anything and everything, making a silent pact not to speak about anything dark or heavy or frightening. Chuck peeked in once and caught them giggling over something ridiculous on the television, then retreated once more to the living room. They took turns with the two desserts, eventually cleaning their plates and feeling marvelously full of the delicious sweets. When they were both coming down from the sugar rush, Blair assured her friend that she would be fine and encouraged her to return to her own room for the night. As nice as it had been having Serena here for a few hours, just to take her mind off things, she wanted to go to sleep, and she wanted to sleep next to Chuck tonight.

"Goodnight, Sis," she heard him drawl as Serena made her exit to return to the Van Der Bass penthouse. She couldn't help smiling a little at their antics, and her heart felt a little lighter when Chuck joined her again in the bedroom.

"Thank you, Chuck," she murmured from her place on the bed.

"I didn't know who else to call," he confessed. "I hope that was okay."

"It was just what I needed. She said…well, she invited me to stay there. In your old room."

"Is that what you want?" he asked carefully, keeping his voice neutral.

"I don't know," she answered honestly, looking back up to him for some kind of guidance. He held her gaze for a moment, then looked away and clenched his jaw a little, staring absently at the large bed.

"You can stay here as often as you'd like," he finally offered. Then, without waiting for her response, he disappeared into the closet to change for bed, allowing her a few minutes to change as well. She smiled a little to herself as she retreated to the bathroom and set her things out on the sink. Maybe she wouldn't stay long, but at least she had the option, and at least he drawing closer instead of pulling away as she feared since she first broke the news.

When she returned to the bedroom, Chuck was already in bed with the lights out. She slipped in beneath the satin sheets, and after a moment, Chuck rolled over to kiss her. There were a million things to think about, not the least of which was where they intended to keep the baby five months from now. For the moment, however, her mind grew quiet. Chuck was here beside her, she had her best friend back, and her baby was still hers. Everything else could wait until morning.


	17. A NOTE ON FUTURE UPDATES!

NOT A CHAPTER! But an update and when chapters may appear in the future...

Hi everyone! So, I haven't touched this in ages. I am terribly, terribly sorry for that. I fell a little out of love with the fandom when Chuck and Blair were broken up, and I lost my inspiration for the story. However, now that the series is over and I can look back on it all, I'm ready to finish this up. I feel a little lost on characterization; Season 1 Chuck and Blair is so long ago now, but I've been reading over the story and where I was taking it, and I'm going to do my best to finish it up while being as true to who they were and who they are as I can! I hope some people are still around to read it, but even if it's just for me, I'd like to finish up my own personal love story to Chuck and Blair! I had another loooong story I was working on that may never see this place, but perhaps if the end of this story goes well, I'll get around to finishing that one as well. These are just two characters who were so wonderful, even when they weren't, that I find I can't abandon them altogether!


	18. Chapter 17

**A/N: Finally, finally got around to finishing this chapter, but the next few are still rough, so I hope you'll bear with me while I try to figure out how I want to handle the upcoming chapters. I promise it won't be as long as the last update! **

Blair waited with nervous anticipation, tapping her foot anxiously on the impeccable white tile of the lobby. Chuck shot her a look as the noise obviously grated on his nerves, but he wisely said nothing as she continued the movement. Today was the day they would hopefully find out the sex of the baby, and although she was excited about the potential gift she was getting out of this situation, she was also desperate to learn whether she was having a boy or a girl. Though she had certainly hoped for a girl, she recently decided having a boy could be equally wonderful. The hormones were really kicking in now, and suddenly things she never would have found cute were downright adorable, from the teeny tiny clothes to soft little blankets and brightly coloured stuffed animals. Part of her wanted to hate the imposition on her life, the sudden derailing of all her plans for the spawn of Chuck Bass, and especially the changing shape of her once slim, lithe body. But the further into this pregnancy she got – and the more time she spent with Chuck Bass the _boyfriend_ – the more excited she got. Of course it was going to be hard. She had no illusions there, and school was more or less miserable now that she was barely even on the same footing as Jenny Humphrey, but for the first time, she was starting to see the possibility of something more important than high school. Her daughter or her son – and she would know in just moments – was for a lifetime. High school would be over in one more year's time. Some days she still wanted to stomp her foot and declare herself queen, remind all her former minions how they used to worship at her throne rather than Penelope's, but no one gave her a second look now that she was clearly pregnant. She went to class, paid attention, spent time with Serena, and then went home.

For now, Blair's home was the Van der Bass suite. Several days after leaving her mother's, she accepted Serena and Lily's invitation to claim Chuck's former bedroom. The rennovations to the penthouse would be completed soon, shortly after the wedding, but for now, the clothes and prized possessions Dorota brought her had a place at Serena's. However, Blair hadn't spent many of her nights actually sleeping in her temporary bedroom. With Chuck so nearby, she most often found herself falling asleep in his bed and quietly returning upstairs in the morning to get ready for school. It was surprisingly nice to spend the night with him, even when they weren't doing anything but sleeping. Her hormones were beginning to ramp up, making her want him all the time, but her stomach seemed to grow by the day, making her self-conscious about letting him see her like that. He didn't seem to mind, but some nights she just felt too gross to even think about letting him touch her. Just falling asleep in the same bed with him felt nice, normal. It wasn't a luxury any girl before her received, so she knew he was serious about making this work. It made her feel safe, protected, like he was committed to this and not running scared as he so often did. She never pictured Chuck Bass as a family man, but the more time she spent around this new and improved Chuck, she was starting to see that he could be the man she needed him to be. He still had his moments, of course, but he was trying for her and for the baby. It was more than she ever thought possible, so she could give him time to grow, to understand what it meant to be a boyfriend, and in twenty more weeks, what it meant to be a father.

"If you're worried about what you're going to have to do, you might as well relax now," Chuck advised, breaking her out of her reverie and lightening the mood a little.

"I'm not worried. Well, at least not about anything other than the damage I'm about to inflict on your bank account," she retorted. "Do you think we should go with Cartier or Harry Winston?"

"Good try, Waldorf. The real question is, how do you feel about third parties being involved? I'm fairly certain the terms of our agreement were that anything goes, but I will concede on just that one point if it will offend your delicate sensibilities."

Ah yes, he was still the Chuck Bass she had known for seventeen years. "Third parties?" she feigned innocence. "You mean Tiffany's?"

"I've tried a few Tiffanys. Never was all that impressed."

"You are disgusting."

"And I'll share everything I know with our son. He'll be the luckiest kid in Manhattan…in more ways than one."

"Corrupt my innocent baby, and the damage to your bank account won't be the only damage you have to worry about," she threatened sweetly. "And, may I add, that your first child will also be your last."

"You're all talk, Waldorf. I saw the baby scrapbook."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she responded with a completely straight face, secretly wondering how in the world he had found it. Just as she'd had a prom scrapbook for much of her life, she had recently begun work on a baby scrapbook. In it, she had a few sketches and a few pictures of things she wanted for the baby, and unfortunately, a few days ago she'd been struck by an adorable nautical theme for a nursery that would be just perfect for a little boy.

Before he could respond, the nurse called her name to take her back to see the doctor. Chuck dutifully followed her back, and Blair went through the normal motions of getting everything checked and stepping on the scale before getting settled in the chair to wait for the doctor.

"Good afternoon Blair, Chuck," Dr. Spalding smiled as she stepped in a few minutes later. "How is everything today? Are you feeling okay?"

"Well, everything in my body is swollen, I'm starving all the time, and I have cravings for things I've never even seen before."

"So excellent?" Dr. Spalding deadpanned.

"We'd like to find out the sex of the baby today, if that's possible," Chuck spoke up.

"We'll certainly try," the doctor nodded. "Sometimes babies won't be all that cooperative with us, but we'll try in just a few minutes." She ran through a few more questions, then glanced at Blair's charts.

"She hasn't gained much weight," Chuck spoke up again, earning him a glare from his girlfriend. "Is that normal?"

"She is a little on the light side," Dr. Spalding confirmed, "but it's nothing to be concerned about. Many people don't gain much with a first pregnancy, and Blair was small to start out with. Right now it looks like everything's on track," she assured him. Then, she lifted up Blair's shirt and applied the gel, causing Blair to wince a little at the sudden cold. She still felt a little self-conscious about Chuck being here for the clinical part of this, but he just seemed intrigued by the image that appeared on the TV screen, and when they heard that quick little heartbeat, she forgot her own discomfort and stared at the screen herself. "This is a beautiful baby you have here, Blair," the doctor praised as she continued to move the wand over Blair's stomach. "Growing right on schedule."

"Can you tell if it's a boy or a girl?" Blair asked again.

"A little anxious, are we?" Dr. Spalding laughed.

"Yes Blair, you seem a little anxious," Chuck taunted. "Any particular reason?"

"I think I'm missing something here," the doctor noted as she looked back and forth between them.

"We might have a small bet riding on this. Chuck keeps insisting it's a boy, and I think it's going to be a girl."

"I see," the doctor chuckled. "Well, I'll take you out of suspense, then. Congratulations, Chuck." Immediately, Blair's boyfriend broke into a huge grin of triumph, and Blair started to panic a little. There was no telling what his depraved mind would think of, and she had been so convinced it was a girl. She was sure there was very little risk or actually having to follow through on the bet, so she recklessly made it and now she was going to have to pay up.

"I knew it," he delared in victory.

"You didn't let me finish," Dr. Spalding scolded. "Congratulations…you're having a little girl."

"What?!"

"We are?" Blair asked excitedly. "I was right?"

"You were," the doctor nodded. "You're having a beautiful little girl. You'd be surprised how many times women are right about these things. Chuck, next time you may not want to bet against the mother of your child. She knows these things."

Blair looked over to Chuck, expecting disappointment, but he was still staring at the screen with the most captivated expression. He didn't look disappointed at all, and as Blair gazed back at the image of her baby, she understood exactly what he was feeling. The initial high of winning immediately faded, replaced by a profound sense of accomplishment, satisfaction, and sheer wonder. _A little girl_, she thought as tears rushed to her eyes. She had hoped and she had dreamed, but now it was real. In a few months, she was going to have a _daughter_. She wanted to laugh and cry all at the same time, and she couldn't take her eyes off the screen. Of course she wouldn't have been disappointed if it was a boy, and no doubt she would have loved him just as fiercely as she loved this little girl, but she so desperately wanted a daughter to dress up, to take shopping. Someday she wanted to sit down with her little girl and talk about everything the way she and her own mother never talked. Now she got her wish, and in a few short months, she was going to have a beautiful little girl that was all theirs.

"So what do you win?" Dr. Spalding asked as she did a few more measurements and printed off pictures for them. Blair was already imagining the page of her scrapbook, covered in pink to memorialise the day they first found out this was their daughter.

"I don't care," Blair answered honestly. "I don't think I need anything anymore."

"It's pretty amazing, right?" the doctor asked knowingly.

"Incredible," Blair agreed. "A girl."

Chuck didn't say a word as Dr. Spalding wrapped up the appointment, and even as Blair put back on her own clothes he stayed silent. She was beginning to get a little concerned as they left the office and headed towards the limo, but as soon as they slid inside, he pulled her into a surprising kiss. Afterwards, he just rested her forehead against hers in a shockingly tender gesture. "You aren't disappointed?" she asked breathily.

Chuck paused for a moment before answering, then drew back and regarded her throughtfully. "I thought I would be," he admitted. "I thought I'd be happier with a boy."

"But now?" she asked hopefully.

"I'm happy," he answered, sounding a little amazed himself. "A little more terrified, but happy."

"Why terrified?" she inquired gently.

"Why? Because there are going to be guys like _me_ out there. Can we just agree now that she's not going to be allowed to date until she's 25?"

"A little hypocritical, don't you think? Considering my…situation?"

Chuck actually shuddered a little at this, and she nearly laughed aloud at the look of terror on his face. "I never thought anything of corrupting you, but eventually someone's going to want to do the same thing to _my_ daughter."

Blair laughed a little to herself, amazed that this was just now occurring to Chuck. Then again, maybe she shouldn't be so surprised. Most seventeen-year old boys weren't thinking about the girls they lusted over as actual people, much less _daughters_. If he wasn't facing the imminent birth of his own child, he'd still be happily deflowering virgins and making fathers round the world weep over the lost innocence of their little girls. "I think this is what they call payback, Bass," she couldn't help teasing.

"You're laughing about this?" he asked incredulously.

Her smile faded just a little as she realised how truly terrified he was. A boy would have been easier on him, easier for him to relate to, easier for him to understand. He had his moments where she just knew he got her and understood what she was thinking, but he was still a boy and he was still hopeless when it came to human emotions. A little girl complicated everything and made fatherhood infinitely more challenging. "Everything's going to be different for her, Chuck," she reminded him quietly of their vow. "We're going to supervise," she insisted. "We'll protect her and make sure she can always talk to us."

"What if I can't do that?" he asked in a rare moment of complete vulnerability. "If it was a boy, I'd have all the answers."

"She's still in the womb, Chuck," she teased lightly. Secretly, she was thrilled to see him so involved, so concerned. He didn't talk about the baby much, or what was to come, and to see him caring so much about what happened to their daughter, about her future, just confirmed that he really was going to be there every step of the way. He hadn't had any panicked moments for quite some time now, but it was still such a strange new world that she couldn't help doubting him at times, couldn't help waiting for him to bolt. "We have time to figure things out," she continued. "I don't think we need to be too worried about her dating just yet."

He nodded, but he still looked a little overwhelmed. "Well, you won," he managed after a moment as Arthur pulled out into the slow-moving traffic. "Where should we go?"

"Chuck, we don't have to go anywhere," she responded earnestly. She really did have everything she wanted or needed, and truthfully, winning the bet didn't mean as much as she thought it would. Before the appointment she was thinking about glittering jewels, but right after seeing that picture of her baby and knowing it was a little girl…well, it all seemed a little trivial now. They had actually made a bet about their baby, and collecting just seemed wrong. "Knowing that I was right is prize enough for me," she said resolutely.

"That wasn't our deal," he shook his head. "And Chuck Bass always follows through on a deal."

"Chuck…"

"We should celebrate," he insisted. "Tiffany's?"

It was as though he had said the magic word, and her reservations disappeared. Who was she to argue with a celebratory gift from Tiffany's? She might be an expectant mother, but she was still Blair Waldorf.

He called up his instructions to Arthur, and soon, Blair found herself inside one of her favourite stores in the world. "What would you-"

"Hush," she silenced him. "This is a sacred place."

Chuck just smiled in bemusement and stood back to watch her wander around the store. She contemplated several items, but to her surprise, nothing really called to her. At first she contemplated something for the baby, like a silver comb with a pink tassel, and then she decided they already had the beautiful little rattle. She spent a few minutes poring over picture frames, thinking of putting the sonogram picture inside. But she didn't even have a home right now, and setting it on her borrowed furniture in a borrowed hotel room didn't feel right, either, so she wandered over to the jewellery.

"Are you ready for my advice now?" Chuck asked.

She considered for a moment, then sighed heavily and walked over to join him.

"Robert?" he asked the shop attendant. The little man scurried away, and Blair looked up at her boyfriend in confusion.

"Chuck? What are you…?"

Before she could finish, Robert had returned carrying two boxes. "Which one, Mr. Bass?"

"The pink one."

A few days later, Blair was sitting on the Met steps eating lunch with Serena. She no longer contented herself with a few bites of yogurt, instead forcing herself to eat a well-rounded meal she picked up on their way to their usual lunch spot. She still wasn't delighted to be eating so much, but she was ravenous these days and she knew she couldn't starve her baby the way she had so often starved herself. Her new goal in life was to make sure her own daughter never felt the need to go a day without eating or shove a finger down her throat to feel good about herself, so at least for now, she was on an earnest mission to eat like a normal pregnant person would without thinking about fat and calories.

"Um, B?" Serena asked, raising her eyebrows innocently. Lunches together had just recently been reinstated following their reconciliation, and for better or for worse, their friendship was practically back to normal.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked suspiciously, not at all liking the look on her best friend's face. She had that excited, hyper thing going on, where her eyes freaking _danced_ and she looked like the sun shone just for her. For all of her lofty ambitions about being normal, Serena could still make her feel so inferior, especially now that everything she wore required elastic. Despite the fact that Chuck found her stomach charming, she felt like a whale in her expanding body, and Serena's natural beauty did little to make her feel better.

"Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Your shoes are ugly?"

"B!" Serena responded, drawing the single letter out into a near-whine.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Well, it looks to me like a certain ring you _always_ wear is missing. And it seems to me that it's been replaced by another one. And a very sparkly one at that."

"Oh," she answered, her cheeks flushing with pleasure. She looked down at her hand for a moment, once more inspecting the lovely piece Chuck had bestowed upon her. She'd almost forgotten about the glimmering beauty, but now that she'd been reminded, she just wanted to_ stare_ at it. Okay, so maybe she should take back the lamentations about her new figure. As it turned out, there were perks to pregnancy she had never been aware of. Like jewellery, for instance.

"Yeah, 'oh'!" Serena laughed that infectious little laugh of hers. "Tell me everything! Is it from Chuck?"

Blair gave her a look as though to say "who else?" Then again, a few months ago the idea would have been ludicrous, so maybe she shouldn't be too hard on Serena. It was a strikingly un-Chuck thing to do, unless you knew the _real_ Chuck the way Blair had come to over the last few months. He was the same smarmy, inappropriate, sex-crazed Chuck he'd always been, but he was also….sweet. And downright doting, at times. He could say the most revolting things in one breath, and in the next, he was somehow telling her precisely what she wanted to hear. And that was the Chuck who bought her the ring, the Chuck who couldn't wait to give it to her.

As Blair discovered at Tiffany's, Chuck had always anticipated giving her jewellery, though he assured her that had he won, he also intended to collect on _his_ prize. Prior to the appointment, he visited Tiffany's and browsed through their selection, setting aside two different pieces. He had picked one in pink and one in blue, and though she hadn't at all anticipated receiving a ring, she couldn't have been more thrilled with his selection. It wasn't too long ago that she was admiring the Cornelius Vanderbilt ring, but she was starting to think her brand new pink ring was much better than a crusty old heirloom. That ring was past; this ring meant future and all that came with it.

"Is that the Tiffany's ring?" Serena asked, grabbing her friend's hand to inspect it more carefully. "Oh my God, it is!"

"Yes, it is. Isn't it _gorgeous?_" she couldn't help gushing. And it really, truly was. If there was one thing she knew well, it was Tiffany's jewellery, and she knew he'd gone for the most exquisite choice, complete with platinum band, glistening little diamonds, and the most perfect pink sapphires she'd ever seen. She also knew how much it cost, and it _almost_ made her feel guilty, but he was a billionaire, and he could afford it. Besides, it was too pretty to feel bad about it. Blair Waldorf was nothing if not a lady, and a lady accepted gifts graciously. Especially gifts in little blue boxes.

"He bought you the Tiffany's Celebration Ring," Serena repeated incredulously.

"He was happy," she tried to shrug, attempting to look nonchalant. They had agreed not to tell anyone about the sex of the baby just yet, but he couldn't really expect people _not_ to notice the decidedly pink ring she now sported, and he couldn't honestly believe she wasn't going to tell Serena.

"Oh my God, B, you're having a girl, aren't you?" her best friend asked, barely able to contain her excitement. "He bought you pink sapphires because you're having a girl?"

"I'm not at liberty to tell you that, S," she answered diplomatically, though she knew the smile threatening to sneak out would give it away.

"Why didn't you tell me you were finding out the sex?" Serena cried. "I'm your best friend! And godmother! And come to think of it, I'm the aunt, too! How could you not tell me that I'm getting a _niece_?!"

"Shh! S!" she protested. "I'm not supposed to tell anyone. We were going to tell everyone at once."

"So he bought you a pink ring?"

Well, it was pretty ridiculous. "Maybe not the most stealthy thing to do," she admitted.

"I can't believe Chuck Bass of all people is excited about this! And buying jewellery! Are you sure we're talking about the same Chuck?"

"He's different with me, S," she defended him, ruffling a little at the implication. "You just don't know him like I do."

"I guess I don't, but still."

Blair frowned and once more looked down at the ring. A few months ago, she never would have guessed that the same Chuck Bass who never slept with a woman twice would be the one excited about having a baby girl and setting aside extravagant gifts to buy his girlfriend. When they first found out about the baby, she was sure he would bail…and he almost did. And yet here he was, making an effort, actually demonstrating that he was looking forward to the birth of their child, actually thinking about their future…and that of their little gir. And truth be told, it did worry her. Even though he had shown another side to himself, a side she always secretly hoped was in there, it was a lot of changes all at once. He couldn't be expected to take this all in stride as well as he had, and the lack of any outward struggle to accept this unexpected situation was, at least to some degree, worrisome. He hadn't said much about the baby since her doctor's appointment, and instead he seemed to be focused on the daily mundane details of school and life. She had to wonder how much fear and uncertainty he kept pent up inside, how much he was hiding behind elaborate purchases like diamond rings with pink sapphires. Maybe he had just made peace with it, but she suspected there was more to the story.

"So have you picked out names yet?" Serena asked, nearly bursting with her excitement over this new development. "Can I help? Oh! You could name her Claire! Like Blair, but also the C, for…"

"Yes, Serena, I get it," she cut her off. "And no, I am not naming her Claire. Actually, we haven't really thought about it," she lied. Of course, she had a small notebook stowed away in a drawer filled with ideas for names. She had started it before she found out she was having a girl, but now she spent almost every evening searching for names and committing the ones she liked to paper. She seemed to change her mind on a daily basis, but she knew it had to be something something beautiful, something romantic. For a day or so, she was convinced she wanted to name the baby Scarlett. When she decided she hated that, she settled for Victoria. Then she decided she couldn't live with her daughter going by Vicki or Tory, so Victoria was certainly out. Of course she had Audrey on her list, but that was just a little too predictable. No, her little girl needed something special, something original and something uniquely _her_.

Serena continued to list off name ideas on their way back to school, and Blair quickly hushed her as soon as they were near their peers again. But somehow, that didn't stop the word from getting out. By last period, all their cell phones began to buzz.

**What do you get when the former Queen of Constance and St. Jude's favorite bad boy procreate? Apparently a little princess, according to the new ring on B's finger. We hear they're trying to keep it quiet. Next time you want to keep a secret, C, don't say it in platinum.**

Instantly, all eyes turned to Blair. More than one jealous girl eyed the fabulous ring on her finger, but she just put away her phone and pretended not to notice. Let them look at her ring; she would neither confirm nor deny its meaning, and everyone might as well see that she was faring just fine without them.


End file.
